Phantasmal Escape
by Marshmaro
Summary: It is a story of peculiarity and affection. "If I show you, will you change your mind?" It is a story of building trust and moving on. "It's not her fault." When everything crumbles down, there will always be the reason to smile again. "I flew off a bridge once!" "I want to be the setter of her heart." Humorous, fun, with a taste of pain. TsukixOC KagexOC - ON HIATUS
1. Chapter 1 Misunderstood

The wind blew upon her as she stood on the edge of the bridge, looking down at the river. Not a day passed by that she didn't look down on that same spot, memories flooding in too fast that made it harder for her to recall. She couldn't remember the last time she felt strong.

* * *

Shy, hard-working, and happy-go-lucky – that was how they described the Media Club's Ishikawa Hirari. She was nice and sweet, her personality matching her simple appearance. Mahogany hair tied up into an everyday ponytail, showing ginger streaks when hit by direct sunlight and a usual gentle look on her face was enough to convince everyone that she does not only look 'nice', but is actually nice. Until you anger her, of course. "Ishikawa, have you prepared a new comic strip for this month's newspaper? We don't want to go chasing deadlines." The club president asked. Hirari looked up from her digital video camera, pausing the replay she was just watching. With a smile, she answered. "Yes, maam!"

'Lives in outer space', playful, and smart – that was how they described the Media Club's Kaji Mashumaro. The 'outer space' part was just an expression to tease her about her rare 'both introverted and playful' personality, although she had no idea why they were using that term to indirectly insult people when it is not even an insulting word in the first place. "Kaji, stop spacing out and do your job. We have deadlines and you're one of the people who make it hard to reach deadlines." The club president scolded, passing by her spot and catching her doing nothing but stare off into space. They said her physical appearance was hardly flawed – slightly curly dark auburn brown hair, a little braid tucked behind her ear accessorized by a tiny feather and a nice petite body frame – so the world made her personality incredibly flawed instead. "I'm already done." She answered the club president.

Weird – that was how everyone described them both.

The club president raised an eyebrow at Mashumaro, who was just reading things on her laptop screen. "If that article turns out to be exaggerated again, I have no other person to blame but you. You are a good writer, but you are eccentric and emotion-based," The president paused. "Put what you have into good use." She picked up the draft from Mashumaro's table and went to her desk to start reading it after doing the same to the other members. Hirari looked at Mashumaro and worriedly sighed. "So… you work fast, as usual. While I'm here… struggling to finish a comic strip I feel unmotivated in doing." She put her hand to her cheek and sighed once again, her left hand holding a pencil over an unfinished drawing. Mashumaro laughed in return. "You should be thankful that you're super talented in drawing that she accepts everything you pass. I don't know if she has issues with me or something since she accepts only about a third of my finished work." The brunette subtly pointed at the president's desk.

Hirari grimaced upon hearing her friend's words. "I don't get what's wrong with what you're doing, though. You were assigned to feature the sports clubs, so you wrote about it. You just did your job, right? Am I the only one who thinks it's alright?" She leaned over to take a peek in the club's laptop, used currently by Mashumaro.

"That's because she writes about the unnecessary players more than she writes about the regulars. Just because you're her friend, doesn't mean you should always stand up with her." A girl with long, straight hair scowled as she passed by the conversing duo. Hirari's open mouth was closed immediately, her eyes narrowing at the disappearing figure of the rude girl. Mashumaro, on the other hand, was just laughing even though she was a bit offended. "Who does she think she is… calling the other players 'unnecessary' just because she always focuses on the ace when she writes? For all I care she's probably just jealous of you, Maro." Hirari whispered. The both of them didn't really want to make a scene and Mashumaro would rather die than be the center of attention, so Hirari chose to keep quiet. "I think she's right, though." Mashumaro said with her usual playful laugh.

This time, Hirari snappishly looked at her companion with wide eyes. Slamming her hands gently on the table, she huffed. "Why do you always laugh at everything even when people talk about you like that?" She asked, a bit furious over the other girl's reaction. "…But… I think she's right." Mashumaro blinked innocently. "If I can't solve my writing problem, then this will be all I'll ever be capable of." She laughed again, annoying Hirari at the moment. "Besides, you overthink a lot. Oooohhh, I guess my friend's worried about me. You're so cute, Jiru." Calling Hirari by her personal nickname while teasing her has always been a significant part of Mashumaro's playfulness. However, the remark didn't make Hirari any less annoyed. She leaned back on her seat and crossed her arms over her chest. "N-No, I'm not! Besides, that's not even true! You're a talented writer! There's nothing you're not capable of!" She slightly cringed after realizing her sentence had a double negative.

Mashumaro looked up and smiled. "I can write the future, you know." She exclaimed.

As soon as she said that, the other club members who could hear their conversation to some extent, glanced at them secretly and shook their heads. "There she goes again. Claiming she can 'write the future' and stuff like that." One member, a boy with bangs long enough to cover his eyes whispered to another. "Dude, she lives in outer space, what do you expect?" The other boy snickered. "Pfft. And by the way, did you see Ishikawa's video camera? I happened to check what's inside when she left it on the table one time. It's filled with videos of random students! Who knew that rumors of her being a stalker were true?" A girl joined in the conversation. She was the same girl from earlier who insulted Mashumaro. "They're both really weird." The first boy commented again.

The conversation may seem harmless to those speaking, thinking they aren't hurting anyone because they chose to say the words behind the girls' backs. What they didn't know was that even if the girls couldn't hear what they were saying, they still knew what they were talking about. Hirari did like social interaction. She liked talking and she liked people. The problem was, the people around here hardly liked her. As for Mashumaro, the girl was struggling to fit in with her eccentricities, but she knew deep inside her that she never belonged there, anyway. Unlike Hirari, Mashumaro doesn't bother to talk to anyone unless necessary or get attached to people.

It has always been that way.

Of course, there were also good people who treat them like a person. "Ishikawa! Kaji!" A male student standing about 178cm tall ran towards them cheerily, his bright eyes beaming with excitement. "I got great news for both of you!" He told them, putting his hands on his waist proudly. Both girls looked at each other in confusion before looking back at their pleased vice president. "You girls are going to transfer to the college prep classes! Your good grades caught the attention of the principal!"

* * *

"Soooo… where _is_ the teacher who requested us to transfer to her homeroom class?" Hirari walked along the hallways, her video camera recording their path as they go alone. Mashumaro shrugged her shoulders while not saying a word. She hasn't said a word to Hirari since they left to find the teacher who somehow grew fond of them when she saw their student record and ended up making a request to transfer them to a college prep class. "Don't be nervous." Hirari said again, finally pulling a reply from the other girl's mouth. "How did you know I was nervous?" Mashumaro asked. Hirari made a face that seemed to have 'sarcasm' all over it. "Uhh… because you are a nervous wreck and dislike talking to new people?" She was aware of Mashumaro's social anxiety, leading to her somewhat introverted personality. In return, Mashumaro ended up laughing after almost an hour of remaining silent.

They were personally called into the office for the notice and now they're stuck wandering around hallways _during_ class hours. Mashumaro didn't like the fact that they had to be excused in their own class just for the reason that they had to talk to the teacher about it. Hirari was focused more on what the camera was recording rather than actually looking at the corridor itself. "Oh, here we are." Hirari said, pointing the camera at the sign on top of the classroom door. "Year 1. Class 4."

Mashumaro hid behind Hirari, shaking all over. "I don't know _anyone_. I'm scared, bruh." She gulped, her soul seeping out of her body slowly. Hirari belted out a fake laugh, but she was just as nervous as Mashumaro, being a naturally shy person. "Don't be unfair! Pick one. 1 or 2?" She grabbed both Mashumaro's shoulders in panic, shaking her forcibly and looked straight into her eyes. "H-Huh? W-Wait, stop shaking me! Gaaaaah! Um… 2?"

Hirari's whole face paled. "I told you to pick 1!" She made a pun excuse out of her question, trying to avoid the consequences. "What does 1 and 2 even correspond to?" Mashumaro asked, still feeling dizzy from being shaken. There was a short pause before Hirari could finally answer. "1 means, I'm going in. That way, I'll have an excuse to socialize with people! And 2 means, well… you go in and talk to her."

Mashumaro swore her life ended right there and right then. Oh, how she disliked talking to those she respects for the mere reason that she is afraid to get scolded.

 _And how she hated being watched by a crowd._

"That's it. I'm dead." She exhaled loudly, bracing herself for the humiliating outcomes of this one conversation. "You owe me one."

She opened the door slowly. Unfortunately, the door made a brushing sound as it slid off its place and everyone inside turned their heads to look at the visitor. Mashumaro gulped and look down, avoiding their gazes. "Oh! I suppose you are Kaji?" The teacher's eyes brightened when she saw the student.

 _I can hear it._

She went near the teacher. Her feet were wobbly and she couldn't look up. She could feel the students' gazes on her.

 _I can hear their words._

"Why are you alone? Where's Ishikawa?" The teacher asked. Mashumaro took a while before she could piece together what words she was going to say. Explaining was a hard task for her. She could write well, she could express herself in pen and paper, but never in oral communication.

 _I can hear the river._

The teacher stood up and was saying something to the students. Mashumaro could not hear her words. Her mind was wandering off elsewhere, a memory that only she knew.

 _I can hear the sound of breaking bones._

The teacher then turned to Mashumaro with an excited smile on her face. Then she put both her hands on Mashumaro's shoulders. She was telling her something, but the only words Mashumaro had paid attention to were "tomorrow" and "first". When Mashumaro finally looked up, revealing the face beneath the auburn brown hair, she finally heard what the teacher was telling her. "I'll be right back. You can stay here for a while and get to know your classmates so you won't feel unwelcome tomorrow."

The teacher let go and for once, Mashumaro actually wanted to pull her back.

"Oh, look. The girl who is obsessed with 'writing the future'. Fat chance that you go in this class, eh?" A voice suddenly spoke up. Mashumaro looked to the direction of the voice and found her old middle school classmate. She didn't say anything to the girl. All students started whispering to one another regarding the girl's comment. "So… what happened to your past writings? Did they _actually_ come true? Eh, Maro-chan?" The girl kept razzing her, with the ill intent of ruining Mashumaro's image to the class.

Mashumaro had great patience. She didn't mind the insults if it's just her. Worse, Hirari was not with her. "Aren't you going to tell us the story of your powers? What was that name you were always screaming? Tsu- Tsu—Oh, right! That guy's name is also Tsukishima!" The girl turned her attention to a blonde guy wearing glasses, minding his own business on his seat. Upon hearing his name, the boy looked at his classmate with one eyebrow raised.

"Um, what's Tsuki got to do with this?" A freckled boy tried defending the blonde boy, a bit uncomfortable with the atmosphere. He obviously did not want his friend to get involved in whatever personal dispute the two girls were making a scene out of. The girl smirked before pointing at Mashumaro. "This girl claims to have the magical power of—"

"TSUKISHIMA AKITERU-SAN SAID SO!" Before they knew it, Mashumaro snapped. She slammed her hands on the table, her head still looking down. "I-I CAN WRITE THE FUTURE! I CAN! I CAN MAKE EVERYONE'S DREAMS COME TRUE!" She was yelling her lungs out, silencing everyone in the room. Upon seeing her reaction, the other girl laughed mockingly. "See? See what I told you? Ladies and gentlemen, our new classmate." The girl was triumphantly announcing.

Mashumaro gritted her teeth out of frustration. Her fists were trembling on the table. Without saying another word, she stormed out of the room. She looked around to find Hirari, but the girl was nowhere to be found.

Meanwhile, back inside the classroom, a heavy silence enveloped everyone. A freckled boy called Yamaguchi went towards the blonde boy sitting by the window. "Tsuki… am I the only one who heard the name right? She mentioned Akiteru-san…" He asked the blonde, Tsukishima Kei, about the name a certain girl yelled earlier. Tsukishima looked at Yamaguchi, then to his classmate who was still smiling as if she had won the lottery. "Hey." He called her.

The girl looked at him, expecting him to praise her. "Oh, Tsukishima! So how does it feel getting your last name involved with a crazy girl like that? You know she—"

"If it's such an _achievement_ to you," Tsukishima cut her off and paused to look at the table Mashumaro slammed her hands on. "Then feel free to brag about your trophy. I'm _sure_ your future bosses would be _incredibly_ satisfied with reading 'I mortified a classmate' on your job application form." He then put his headphones on, covering his ears and went back to his own business, taking down notes from the previous lesson.

Everyone else remained silent.


	2. Chapter 2 Karasuno Mascot

" _That's it. I'm dead." She exhaled loudly, bracing herself for the humiliating outcomes of this one conversation. "You owe me one."_

Hirari gave her friend an apologetic smile and she waved at her as she entered the classroom. Just as soon as Mashumaro was out of her sight, she heard two synchronizing voices screaming. It immediately caught her attention, moving her hand so the video camera could take in whatever event was coming her way. "Sounds like a little fun won't hurt." She told herself as she walked towards the window stretching her neck a little so she could look down at the same time her arm slanted so the moment could be captured with her camera.

What she saw piqued her curiosity, although she thought it was really weird. She saw two boys, who were wearing gym clothes, racing against each other. Her eyes widened and a sweat drop fell from her forehead, wondering _why_ and _how_. They went by so fast, she wasn't even sure if she saw them clearly. The only thing she was sure about was a dash of orange and black side-by-side.

She stopped recording, just to play that scene again. Her trusty video camera never fails to gather evidence and information for her, and she was glad she always had it on-hand. "Oh, wait. I know these guys." She mumbled, putting the video on slow-motion so she could see it clearly. "They're volleyball players… featured on our club's last article." She started running along the corridor, forgetting about her friend who was still inside the classroom. "Volleyball, huh…"

It didn't take long for her to reach the back door of the school building. A normal person would peek outside, but she didn't. Instead, she put her video camera on recording mode and slowly extended her arm to the door, the lens of her camera facing outside. She used her index finger to stop the recording before she withdrew her hand and replayed the last video. There was nothing on the video except for the vending machine. Sighing, she was about to go outside, seeing as it is safe to, when someone tapped on her shoulder from behind. She let out a tiny squeak, surprised at the physical contact, and abruptly turned around, pressing the record button on her camera again.

Her fellow club members were there. The girl with long straight black hair, the guy with really long bangs, and another boy with brown hair were all there. "Oh, stalking again, Ishikawa? I'm pretty sure you're aware that just because we're from the Media Club, doesn't mean we have to be creepy." The girl joked, although Hirari knew it was half-meant. Hirari smiled at them, trying to look happy. She did not want anyone to pity her or to look pathetic in their eyes. Her grip tightened around her camera.

The shorter boy with brown hair stepped forward. "Who is it this time?" He asked her, as he peeked outside to check. "Oh, no one's there. You even go as far as stalking invisible specters? You sure are scary. You're a good person, but scary." He told her with a smile as he pretended to be subtle about his insult. They knew that the club president liked Hirari's work and hard-working attitude, which is why they still tried to get in her good side by concealing their insults with hearty laughter and smiles. Hirari knew that. She was nice, but she was not an idiot. "Yeah… I'm scary, alright." She returned his smile with her own awkward one. "Um, I have to go, you see, so…" She stepped backward, both her face and video camera still facing her acquaintances. She spun on her heels, finally stepping out of the building and breathing fresh air, but the girl ran in front of her, blocking her way. "Oh, wait! Aw, Ishikawa… um, I have a favor to ask you, is it okay?"

 _Stop using me._

"Yeah, sure!" Hirari nodded in agreement. "Really? Thanks! Um, so… can you give me your address?"

 _I want friends._

This time, her eyes widened in fear when the two other boys went to either of her sides. They were now surrounding her, all with smiles on their faces hiding grudges and envy. They knew she was going to say 'yes'. They knew she was going to always agree. They knew how afraid she was of getting yelled at. And if she ever said 'no', they _will_ yell at her. And they knew that she knew it. "Um, well… my address?"

 _I need social interaction._

"Come on, Ishikawa! You can give me _your_ address or Kaji's. By the way, where is that outer space girl? It's rare not seeing you two together huddled in a corner. Come on… it's for my brother's license! I just need an address to give him to 'prove' that he lives in Miyagi. Come on, please?" The girl stepped forward, invading Hirari's personal space. Her hand started shuddering violently and the video was getting shaky. Tears were already welling up in her eyes.

 _But I'm too powerless to protect the people around me._

Hirari couldn't speak. She opened her mouth to talk back, but instead of words, what came out was an ear-piercing scream.

 _Make them stop._

"HEY!"

A loud voice interrupted them. The three people looked over to the direction of the annoying voice. Hirari opened her eyes and realized she was already on the ground. That was when they all panicked when they saw two boys running as fast as cheetahs towards where they are. "OUT OF THE WAY, DAMMIT!" A deeper voice followed. They all jumped away from the boys' paths and watched in confusion as they screamed while running. "… Woah, what was with that guy with the orange hair?" The girl who cornered Hirari asked, dusting off the dirt from her skirt. "Forget about that shorty, that guy with black hair was scarier! Did you see the way he looked at us when he yelled?" The brunette boy complained, annoyed at the two for ruining the fun.

Hirari took that chance to run away. She quickly stood up and ran for her life, ignoring their calls and never looking back. She had already stopped the recording before she stood up, worried that her camera might have gotten scratches after she jumped out of the way of the running boys. She didn't know where she was headed to. As long as she ran, she'll…

" _Run, Hirari! Get help!"_

She'll always be powerless. As long as she ran, she'll always be a coward.

The tired girl finally took the time to register in her mind where her feet took her. She stopped to catch her breath and looked around. "… Uh…" She thought out loud, still having no idea as to where she ended up. She put the camera back inside her bag so she could fix her ponytail, which had been messed up because of her long run.

Her heart stopped for a second when she heard their familiar voices, still calling her name. Fear-stricken and panicked, the poor girl looked around and found a door to the gym. She ran towards it, taking a peek inside to see if there are any people. She had no time to rummage through her bag and get her camera, so she tiptoed on the wooden floor and made her way towards what seemed to be a storage room. Even though she hated the dark, she still closed the door and sat on the floor, exhausted. She rested her head on the wall and exhaled.

It didn't take long until she heard strong footsteps outside, as if a dozen men where continuously tapping their shoes on the wooden floor. She inwardly gasped and stood up, hitting her head on a bucket hanging from a mop stick. She yelped and clutched her head, cursing under her breath.

Suddenly, the footsteps stopped.

She covered her mouth with her hand to prevent herself from making a noise. "What is it, sensei?" A man's muffled voice was heard. "A-Ah, Ukai. I thought I heard a sound from inside the storage room." Another muffled voice said.

Hirari pulled her hair, messing up the ponytail she just fixed. She was panicking like crazy. Trying hard not to make any more unnecessary sounds by pursing her lips hard, she dug into her bag for her camera and switched it to night mode. "Maybe the sound came from outside, though. I'm not sure." The gentler voice commented, making Hirari panic even more. She switched her camera's flashlight on, and pointed it around to check the room. At the corner of her eye, she found her secret weapon. "Well, I think we should at least check it, Takeda-sensei. What if those idiots cut their classes and went to hide in there?"

Outside the storage room, a teacher with glasses shot a terrified expression at a middle-aged man. "I-I can't, Ukai! What if there's something else in there?" The teacher, Takeda, reasoned out. His hands were trembling as he held on to the door. The middle-aged man with dyed blonde hair, Ukai, face-palmed. "Fine, I'll do it." He grumbled and put his hands on the handles. He slid the door open revealing the culprit.

Angry chibi eyes. A stout, but pointy beak. Black wings. White, orange, and black jersey color. Stumpy feet.

"… A humanoid crow?" Ukai blinked his eyes in confusion, not noticing that Takeda has already fainted after seeing a huge crow. The mascot waved its wings and a small and adorable "caw caw" sound came from it. Ukai's eyebrow twitched. "Let me guess. It's you, Tanaka, isn't it?" He poked at the beak.

Hirari did not know how to avoid getting caught so she stumbled backward; falling on the storage room's floor and a loud crash was heard. The crash helped Takeda regain his consciousness, and the two club leaders watched as buckets fell down on the mascot. "A-Are you okay, Tanaka?" Ukai sweat-dropped, wondering what stupid plan 'Tanaka' has on mind. Takeda adjusted his glasses and leaned closer. "That's Tanaka?" He asked Ukai.

Hirari's eyes were already spinning. The costume was too stuffy for her and she was rolling around, hitting mops and brooms in the storage room, trying to stand up. "Who else could it be, then?" Ukai asked back, his hand massaging his temples. Both teachers stared at the weird mascot in confusion. "But if it's Tanaka, then it will surely move around actively despite being in a costume, right?" Takeda pointed out. Ukai nodded in agreement with his hand to his chin. "Hm… since it's a bit awkward, it must be Kageyama, then."

When Hirari was finally able to stand up, she wobbled inside the costume and started walking towards the front door. "Hey, where are you going?" Ukai yelled out to her, but she still tried running even though she _can't_ run. Somewhere far, she could hear the bell ring, signaling the end of classes. She has to go now before anyone else sees her!

Just as she reached the door, someone bumped into her, making her fall down again. She flapped her wings in shock. "ACK!" The person who bumped into her flinched, and started freaking out, hugging his companion. Until he realized that it was just a mascot. He blushed in embarrassment, letting go of his companion, realizing that the orange-haired boy beside him was looking at him weirdly. "Kageyama, you were actually scared?" the shorter boy asked. "I think it's cute, though." He said before going near the mascot and bending down to grab unto one of its wings. "Hey, it's so soft!" He exclaimed, his eyes widening with excitement.

The boy who bumped into the mascot, glared at it, not knowing that a fragile girl was inside. Hirari squeaked and backed away as far as she can until she hit a wall. "Kageyama, you're scaring it!" The shorter boy bumped his elbow lightly at Kageyama. " _I_ scared _him_?" Kageyama yelled back. The shorter boy stuck his tongue out and made a face. "Kageyama got scared! The bird scared Kageyama!" He said again, making Kageyama grab a ball from the basket and tossed it to the former's face. "MAKE UP YOUR MIND, DUMBASS HINATA! _WHO_ SCARED _WHO_?!"

"HEY! STOP THAT!" Ukai's yell echoed all throughout the gym, silencing everyone including Hirari. Kageyama snapped his head toward the mascot again, his eyes crossed, making Hirari tremble with fear.

She let out a soft sigh. _"Yep. I'm dead."_

Kageyama looked a good while at the mascot, before he walked toward it until he was staring down at the crow. Hirari couldn't let out another sound. She desperately flapped her wings, when in truth; she was flailing her arms in distress. " **Oi**." Kageyama called out, making her flinch. Inside the mascot, a girl is crying. The Karasuno setter kneeled down, intensely staring at the mascot, not realizing that the person inside is already on the verge of fainting. "Kageyama! Don't be mean! You're a scarecrow! Scarecrow!" Hinata's shouting didn't make the situation any less scary. Hinata's voice made Kageyama more annoyed that his face got even more intimidating, successfully making the girl cry a river.

Unable to handle it anymore, the mascot shrieked and stood up, hitting Kageyama by accident. Although the costume was stuffy, Hirari still managed to run out of the gym due to adrenaline rush. Everyone in the school grounds stopped and stared with bewildered faces at the shrieking crow mascot and some screamed. As she went back inside the building, she crossed paths with a blonde guy and a freckled boy.

"EH?" Both boys blinked in utter shock before they stepped aside quickly to make way for the terrified mascot. "… What was that?" Tsukishima asked. "Um…" Yamaguchi could barely answer.

The mascot kept running and running, until finally, she reached the stairs. After taking just about five steps up, the mascot costume got too heavy for her and she went off-balance, falling down the stairs.

On the other hand, a certain girl was panting, having recently yelled, ran out of the classroom, and hid in the first floor restroom. When she turned to the corner, she didn't notice a giant crow falling from the stairs. When she finally did, it was too late. A horrified reaction appeared on her face.

"GAAAAH!"

Both girls screamed as Hirari fell on top of Mashumaro. "I-I can't breathe!" Mashumaro exclaimed, accidentally knocking off the mascot's head. Hirari's hair was no longer in a ponytail, and she had swirls for eyes. "I… I can finally breathe…" She said in between her panting.

Just when they thought the situation can't get any more worse than it already is, they heard a tapping of the foot right in front of them. They looked up, only to be greeted by their unhappy club president. She had her arms crossed against her chest and she was tapping her foot impatiently.

"You girls are in serious trouble."


	3. Chapter 3 Eccentricities

_There were three men enclosing in to him as he dared them to kill him, almost giving up his life. They threatened him with a knife, but instead of getting scared, the only thing that came out of his mouth was: "Go ahead. I failed my brother, anyway."_

 _And before they could hurt him, she came. She came for him. To encourage him to continue playing volleyball like before._

 _But as she talked some sense into him, one of the men came to them with his knife and—_

* * *

Her thoughts were interrupted when a hand grabbed her forearm, gripping it tightly. The teacher wasn't done checking the attendance for homeroom, and the two girls stood by the door, waiting for a signal to come in. "I shouldn't have broken down in front of Minori yesterday." Mashumaro regretfully smiled, her grip around Hirari's arm loosening. Hirari shook her head and smiled back. "My, my. I guess it can't be helped." She told her. It was then that the door was opened, revealing the teacher's happy face. "Go on and introduce yourselves." She showed them in.

Mashumaro's loose grip tightened once again. A small gasp came out of her mouth. "B-But what happened yesterday was so embarrassing!" Her whole face went red and she looked down at her feet. Hirari's arm was slowly going numb because of the former's grip. "H-Hey, my arm hurts!" She whispered back. "Fine, I get it! I'll go first! Calm down." She followed up, before taking off Mashumaro's hand off of her arm and entering the classroom.

All eyes were on her and she started to walk funny because of anxiousness. "I-I'm!" She tried talking, but only the first word came out of her mouth. Being a shy person had a lot of disadvantages, and she had already experienced all of them. Blushing furiously due to the fact that the other students were staring at her attentively, she opened her mouth to say something again. "I'm Ishikawa Hirari! Year 1 Class 2! I like cookies!" She ended up talking so loud and saying something random that her small voice sounded tinier and higher than usual. She realized that the students of Class 4 really _are_ college prep students, all because they were still listening to her with full attention. "Um, Ishikawa… you're in Class 4 now. And we like cookies, too." The teacher told her with a smile. The whole class erupted with laughter.

Unconsciously, the girl's hands made their way to her face and she was inwardly screaming. She opened her eyes to peek between her fingers and saw Mashumaro outside the classroom, waving at her teasingly. _"Oh, how I want to strangle you right now."_ She thought.

"Okay, silence!" After a short giggle, the teacher motioned for Mashumaro to move in. The girl stopped laughing at her friend's humiliating introduction and flinched, her face slowly filling up with dread and insecurity. She took one step in, her fingers automatically scratching on her hand as she felt all their gazes upon her just like yesterday.

" _Oh, look. The girl who is obsessed with 'writing the future'. Fat chance that you go in this class, eh?"_

Her eyes shut close, as she took a deep breath.

Sitting by the window, a certain blonde rested his arms on his desk and his face on his palm. He watched her look around, avoiding everyone's face. She opened her mouth, only to end up closing it again. "Um… sensei." She turned to the teacher with a pleading expression. "I forgot my name."

 _Chirp chirp chirp. Awkward silence._

The intense stares turned blank. "Eh?" The whole class reacted, dumbfounded. Hirari face-palmed, shame creeping up to her. First, she embarrassed herself. Second, her friend's actions are embarrassing them _both_. The teacher blinked in an unbelieving way. Everyone's mouths hung agape at the incredibly weird girls and their weird statements. "Um, uhh, okay. I understand if you two girls are nervous. There is a vacant seat over there beside Tsukishima and the seat behind it." She pointed to the seats. Mashumaro's face turned pale.

"T-Tsukishima?" Hirari whispered to Mashumaro. The other girl shrugged her shoulders in response. "Probably just the same last name. They can't be related, right?" Mashumaro whispered back, completely forgetting that they are _still_ in front of the whole class. Hirari pumped her fists, widening her eyes. A huge grin appeared on her face. "WHAT IF IT'S A PLOT TWIST!? Like, you know, the things you always write? The tearjerker stories you passed to Miss Prez?" Her voice gradually became louder each word, also completely forgetting that they were _still_ in front of the class. "T-This is the real life, you know! It's not like _those_ types of adrenaline-inducing stories can come true!" Mashumaro retorted back, looking up at the ceiling in thought. "Oh, right! This isn't a shoujo manga!" Hirari said again. "Shoujo manga barely even have any angst-y parts!" The other girl argued.

This time, the whole class were speechless. The teacher sweat-dropped, not expecting the girls to suddenly overcome their nervousness and start talking to each other casually in front of the whole class as if they were the only people around. Even Yamaguchi and the girl who caused a scene last time, Minori, had a blank expression. "Uhh, girls… are you going to sit or…?" The teacher was slowly, _very slowly_ , regretting her decision of transferring the girls to her homeroom. She sheepishly chuckled, expecting the girls to finally sit. Both Hirari and Mashumaro squealed in surprise and bowed down to her. "Sorry!"

Mashumaro nudged Hirari on the arm. "You sit beside that guy. He looks intimidating." She told her. With a little hiss, Hirari marched to the seat, grumbling and complaining to herself. She wanted to sit next to someone she could socialize with, not someone who barely even notices their presence. Mashumaro sat behind Hirari with a pleased expression. "Good luck, Jiru." She told Hirari, teasing her with the childhood nickname.

The teacher left the class late, all because the girls' introductions took half of the time allotted to homeroom period. Hirari was fidgeting on her seat, wanting to talk to someone besides her old friend. Mashumaro, on the other hand, stayed calm and silent, a small smile gracing her facial features. However, in her head, she was secretly asking all people to stay away from her, knowing that it will only make her awkward and nervous. The class seemed all comfortable towards one another, as friends of each group made their ways towards the seats of the people they were close to.

Meanwhile, Minori was glaring at Mashumaro and Hirari with deadly eyes. She hated the fact that the two were perfectly happy despite most of the people calling them 'weird'. Mashumaro had her belief that she can 'write the future' and 'make dreams come true', that's why she writes a lot of baseless praises to the bench players of sports teams to give them encouragement. Minori remembered being in the tennis club when they were in middle school. When everyone saw Mashumaro's article regarding the players, she hated the fact that Mashumaro had to mention her.

 _A fantastic player she is, Minori is determined not to stay on the bench forever. She will one day soar up and be the ace of the team, like the first flower blooming in spring…_

And it never came true.

Minori will never forget her humiliation.

And Hirari had a tendency to record or draw her experiences. She would unintentionally capture secrets and all of that was stored in her video camera. It's as if that camera was her memory bank. That fact was enough to piss Minori off. "Weirdos."

Hirari looked behind her and saw Mashumaro staring back at her. "What?" Mashumaro asked. Hirari tilted her head and raised her eyebrow. "Didn't you notice the way Minori was looking at us?" She covered the side of her mouth so no one could hear her. They've had enough embarrassments for today. "Ohhhh. Don't worry about her." Mashumaro answered with a content smile. Hirari smiled back. They decided to drop the topic and just start a new one.

Little did they know that a blonde was quietly watching them from the corner of his eye. His tongue clicked, annoyed at the two talkative new students talking about stuff beside him. He couldn't concentrate on his work, trying to translate the English sentences to Nihongo. He knew that the next class is English and he wouldn't be able to finish if the girls are talking noisily about 'flowers' and 'how kangaroos would kick a giraffe's face'. He was hopelessly staring at his notebook, his right hand pointing the pencil at the words. He ran his other hand through his hair out of frustration.

It was not long after when their next teacher came. "A female!" Mashumaro exclaimed loud enough for the students near her seat to hear. "I wonder why most English teachers are female?" Hirari asked her. "Well, isn't that obvious? Like, when you speak in English, the words 'oh my gosh' and 'like, whatever' sound better when it's a female talking." Mashumaro answered.

The students who could hear their conversation sweat-dropped. Tsukishima finally turned his head towards Hirari, who leapt out of her seat in astonishment. "H-Hi?" She managed to say, her heart beating even faster than before. Mashumaro looked back and forth from Hirari to Tsukishima. From a seat a bit farther than theirs, Yamaguchi was looking at them with a 'what-in-the-world-are-you-doing' expression. Tsukishima was annoyed. Really annoyed. "You can just go back to your old class if you can't fit in." He finally blurted out.

To him, it may sound like one of his normal insults. But to both Mashumaro and Hirari, those words were like needles being pierced into their hearts. Hirari's face showed nothing but terror. Mashumaro looked down at her table, hiding her eyes under her bangs. Hirari was still bothered by that fact; yet, Mashumaro had already learned to live with it since a long time ago.

"Class, we're going to have an activity today. We're going to the library to research about communication theories." The English teacher spoke up. "Now I will group you according to your seats. Whoever is seated close to you in a square arrangement will be your group."

"Tch." Tsukishima complained. Both Hirari and Mashumaro were scared, so they did not say anything. The guy sitting behind Tsukishima was getting uncomfortable with the fact that his group does not seem to get along.

* * *

Kageyama opened his bag, his brain hurting trying to take in whatever information the teacher was teaching. He was about to take out headache pills, when he remembered something curious he picked up from the storage room yesterday after practice. He hesitated, thinking that the teacher will scold him or punish him again for not listening. Thing is, he _was_ always listening. He just couldn't understand what was being said.

He remembered asking everyone in the volleyball club about who owned the video camera, but no one knew. Failing to find the owner, he just shoved it in his bag and went home that night.

He picked up the video camera from his bag, his eyes darting to the teacher, who had his back turned while writing something on the board. He concluded that it was safe to take out the camera, so he did. Examining it carefully and moving the 'tv-like screen' which he doesn't know the name or the purpose of, he accidentally turned it on. "Crap." He cursed, hurriedly trying to find the volume down button. His hands were so rough and sweaty that he almost dropped the camera after making it 'jump' 5 inches upward from his hands. When he caught it, the teacher looked behind. "Kageyama."

Upon hearing his name, Kageyama stood up abruptly, causing his seat to fall behind him. The girl who was sitting beside him freaked out and almost fainted at his sudden movement. "Yes?" He asked, standing as still and straight as a soldier. The teacher blinked a few times. "Keep up the good work." He told Kageyama before going back to writing on the board.

The reason why the teacher said that was because he thought Kageyama was recording his lesson.

On the other hand, Kageyama innocently wondered about what he said. He sat on his seat, forgetting that the said seat fell down a moment ago.

And he ended up crashing on the floor.

* * *

Tsukishima and his male classmate were more than stressed, trying to find their two troublesome group mates. For some reason, even though Yamaguchi was in a different group, he was following Tsukishima around. "What's with the long face?" Yamaguchi asked. "I came here to study, not to babysit children." Tsukishima answered, his eyebrows creased and his eyes narrowed. After searching through the library, they heard consecutive thuds on an aisle not far from where they currently were. They decided to go check what it was. "Oh! Found them!" The other male classmate called the two boys.

Hirari was flat on the ground face-first, surrounded by a number of books. Mashumaro's head rested on Hirari's back and she was lying on the floor, facing the ceiling, an open book covering her whole face. "I told you not to move…" Mashumaro's pained and muffled voice could be heard even from Tsukishima's position. "Who was the one who insisted to carry her instead of using a chair?" Hirari complained, finally lifting her face up from the floor only to find three pairs of feet in front of her face. Her face went beet red. "M-Maro! Someone witnessed our failure!" She yelled, rolling from her position. Mashumaro's head bumped against the floor when Hirari moved, and she sat upright, clutching the back of her head. "Ow!"

"Um…" Their groupmate looked at Tsukishima. "So…" Yamaguchi also looked at Tsukishima. No words could describe the amount of annoyance on the blonde's face. The males on either side of Tsukishima backed away in fear. Tsukishima cleared his throat.

This made both girls look up, blink innocently, and give him their usual happy smiles.

Without a word, Tsukishima walked towards them and _picked_ them up by the back of their collars. He walked back toward where Yamaguchi was and before he could pass by, he spoke. "Yamaguchi. Ichinose." He called with a venomous voice. The other boys flinched at how deep Tsukishima's angry voice was.

"Pick up the books."

"Yes, sir!"

* * *

He stood in front of the rest room mirror, staring at the video camera. He turned it on by moving the screen, and it automatically replayed the last video on it.

" _Oh, stalking again, Ishikawa? I'm pretty sure you're aware that just because we're from the Media Club, doesn't mean we have to be creepy."_

His eyes widened. "What the hell?" He reacted. The people on the video all had smiles on their faces and were casually joking, but Kageyama saw otherwise.

They looked like laughing hyenas cornering an injured antelope in the wild.

" _Who is it this time?"_

The video showed a boy look outside what he recognized as the back door of the school. _"Oh, no one's there. You even go as far as stalking invisible specters? You sure are scary. You're a good person, but scary."_ Kageyama didn't notice his teeth grinding against each other. Whoever the owner was, he was having second thoughts whether to return the camera or not. He didn't know why the owner was taking videos of people bullying him or her, but he knew that whatever he or she is trying to do, it's torture. It's like making copies of traumatic memories.

" _Yeah… I'm scary, alright."_

Kageyama felt his heart wrench at the girl's voice. He didn't even know the people in it or who the owner of the camera was. He didn't even want to have anything to do with it. But when he finally heard the owner's small voice, he didn't just hear a bell-like tone. It had a painful feel to it. He was probably just imagining things.

But he knew it wasn't his imagination, though. When he heard that voice, he remembered the moment in junior high where he tossed…

…and no one was there.


	4. Chapter 4 Reverie

Tsukishima's eyebrow twitched. He tried hard to concentrate on the book he was reading, but how was he going to concentrate if _this_ odd girl is staring at him, unblinking?

Long story short, when he picked them up, he scolded them again about how everyone was going to fail because of them and forced Hirari and Mashumaro to do their own parts by pushing Hirari towards Ichinose, their other groupmate, and asked them to go find another table. He then glared at Mashumaro for trying to escape from him by tiptoeing towards Hirari's spot.

Mashumaro cleared her throat, but ended up choking. Tsukishima took out his notebook and started writing some of the key words he read from the book, ignoring her coughing. She was already pounding her fist on her chest, but he still refused to look at her. When she finally stopped, she leaned in closer to Tsukishima. The blonde felt a vein pop on his forehead when she put her head under the open book's spine and peeked at him with her chestnut brown eyes. He raised the book to cover her eyes, continuing with his reading.

The girl finally gave up. She leaned back on her seat and pouted. "Can I at least write, too?" She mustered up enough to courage to finally ask, although she wasn't scared of pissing off Tsukishima earlier. Without looking at her, Tsukishima flipped the page and started writing again. "No." He calmly answered. "But if I write it, it will give us good luck." The girl claimed.

Tsukishima finally looked at her, raising his eyebrow. He didn't want to ask why she thinks her writing skills were magical nor why she knows the name of his brother. Not only that, he also didn't know why she went as far as to yell at the whole class just to defend his brother's words, if it's true that he did tell her that 'she can write the future'. The only thing he knew about this girl is that she had a bad reputation.

But then again, she wouldn't be transferred to his class if she isn't smart, right?

A loud argument interrupted his thinking. He glanced over to the other table and saw Hirari panicking and throwing all of the things from her bag on the table. Some of her stuff even hit Ichinose in the face. "H-Hey, stop that! We're in the middle of a group work!" Ichinose had a look that seems to scream 'help' all over it. "My camera! My camera's lost! Why am I so slow to realize it!?" Hirari panicked, holding her bag upside down, all her things dropping on the table. The librarian was already walking towards the duo. "Tch." Tsukishima grimaced, not wanting to get in trouble just because of the two girls. He looked at Mashumaro, who was already laughing at Hirari.

He had no other choice. He stood up and pushed both the book and notebook in front of Mashumaro. "Finish it. I'll have a word with the librarian." Then he left a happy Mashumaro there writing as soon as she got ahold of his pencil.

Mashumaro was a fast worker. Once a task is given to her, she'll finish it in a short amount of time. When Tsukishima came back with Hirari and Ichinose, the two boys were surprised when she said she was done. Hirari didn't get surprised, though.

Unfortunately, the teacher called for all the papers to be passed immediately so neither one of them could check how well Mashumaro wrote their activity. Tsukishima was just relieved that he could finally spend the day without getting too involved with the two troublemakers. The day was spent with none of them talking to each other.

When a whole day of classes finally ended, their English teacher went by their classroom again and called over Tsukishima. "I need to talk to you and your groupmates about earlier." She waited for everyone else in the classroom to leave before she went in front.

The two girls gulped. Ichinose was traumatized for life. Tsukishima had never felt so annoyed in his entire life. The English teacher was staring at one of the pages of their work with a blank expression on her face. "The first part seems okay. Tsukishima must have done this… but the rest…" Her eyes turned to Mashumaro, who inwardly squealed. "… Look, you just transferred classes, but… well…" The teacher set the papers down on her table and sighed. "I know you're smart. I know you are. Your writing was good, your English grammar is correct, even though your vocabulary isn't wide, and you were able to pull it off, but… you make it seem as if the topic, 'communication and society' is a tragic story." The teacher pointed at two of the sentences from Mashumaro's work.

' _Humans are naturally social beings who crave for company. Even the most introverted people cannot survive without another person within their field of interaction.'_

"That's not the only sentence where you wrote strangely. You sound like you're a lonely person." The teacher stood up. Hirari's eyes widened with despair at the teacher's last sentence. She turned her head towards the other girl beside her. Mashumaro still had her usual smile.

 _There you go again. Laughing it off, as usual._

"And you, Ishikawa. What do you have to say for yourself, causing a scene in the library?" Hirari's eyes welled up into tears. She hated crying, but she couldn't help it. The teacher saw droplets fall from the girl's eyes and sighed again. "Okay, I'll give you another chance for this. But you have to pass it to me before this day ends. I'll be in the faculty office. Understood?"

"Yes, ma'am." The four of them answered. The teacher nodded and left the classroom. Yamaguchi, who was waiting outside for Tsukishima entered as soon as she was gone. He stopped when he saw Hirari wiping off her tears, Ichinose trying to comfort the girl, Tsukishima looking down at Mashumaro with his hand on his hips, and Mashumaro sitting on a chair and looking down, her bangs covering her eyes. "What happened, Tsuki?" Yamaguchi ran over to Tsukishima, who was sternly looking at Mashumaro.

The blonde fixed his eyeglasses. "Looks like I won't be attending club today. Tell the coach and the captain later when class ends." He finally talked. "Oh… um…" Yamaguchi looked at Mashumaro, who refused to move. He then looked at Hirari, who had just finished crying. "Okay, Tsuki." Seeing as he can't do anything to help the situation, he just agreed.

"As for you," Tsukishima said, but Mashumaro still didn't look up at him. "Don't expect me to fix this by myself. This is your doing, so you're coming with me to the library."

As much as he didn't want to, he had no choice. He didn't like fixing other people's problem behavior and didn't like making up for something he didn't do. He knew that she would try to fix it on her own, but will only end up writing something ridiculous again.

"Hirari." Mashumaro finally talked. She looked up and smiled at Hirari. "Looks like I messed up." She laughed, and it only made Hirari want to cry more. "Don't worry about me! I'll be with Tsukishima, anyway. Go to club and tell them I couldn't make it. I'll help you find your camera later, too."

Hirari bit her lip, but she couldn't say anything while Tsukishima was there. She still had a hunch that he was related to Akiteru. But then if they really are related, then she could at least talk and give him a piece of her mind so he'd stop pestering Mashumaro, right?

She breathed in, ready to make her voice loud and clear just so Tsukishima could hear what she was about to say. "Akiteru-san and Shiori-san would help us both if they were here." She said before leaving the room. Ichinose had no idea what was going on and went away, too, like the side character he is. Meanwhile, Mashumaro looked down again with wide eyes, unable to believe that Hirari said that in front of someone. She heard footsteps and a soft rustle, unknowing that Tsukishima had picked up both his and her bag. "If you don't want to, I'll be forced to exclude you from the group. Nothing works with effort alone. Even if you are making such a huge effort to your writing, you'll only be hurt in the end."

The girl looked up at him and was surprised to see a hand extended towards her. Tsukishima wasn't facing her instead, he was facing to the side, and he had his other hand inside his pocket. "… Let's go."

The girl was taken aback at his sudden nice behavior. She hesitantly took his hand.

* * *

Hirari slumped on her seat. Everyone in the club seemed r _eally_ happy that Mashumaro wasn't coming. They even bought lots of food to snack on while working and even took selfie pictures. Of course, she knew they'd scowl when she joined in, so she didn't.

The club president, who was also one of the people who did not join in the fun, stepped in front of Hirari, distracting the girl from her solitude. "Ishikawa, I have a task for you. I think you'll be able to pull it off." The president said sternly. Hirari wasn't in the mood to do anything today, but she didn't want to get yelled or break the president's trust. She stood up and put on her best face forward. "Yes, ma'am! I'll do my best!" She agreed.

The president smiled. "I know you would. Okay, so I'm thinking of a way to solve your video-taking problem and Kaji's emotion-based writing." She explained. "Your drawing skills and the comics you make are splendidly done. Some of your videos are useful to our work, but… sometimes, I have to say you go overboard. And we all know how emotion-based Kaji's works are. It's a shame because the girl writes excellently, too. So I thought of trying something to make use of your hobbies." She finished. Hirari nodded, gesturing for her to continue.

"Recently, the volleyball club has been the talk of town because of a change in their team play. There's this short player who has amazing athletic reflexes and a talented setter, too. They aren't the only ones who make up the power of our volleyball club, though." The president picked up a pencil and spun it with her fingers. "Since Mashumaro has this habit of making the 'other' players stars of the show, then I thought it would be great if she could write about _all_ the volleyball club's players so they all get equally recognized. The team is strong, after all."

Hirari's mouth hung agape, remembering the humiliation she almost experienced when she hid in the gym. Her whole face turned pale. "And you… I want you to take videos of the practice plays. With their permission, of course. It would also be nice if you could learn how to draw all their faces so you could make cute comics about them at times."

The girl shuddered at the thought. She didn't want to tell the president that she had lost her camera. "I-I'll do it!" Still, she agreed with no question. The president nodded before going back to reviewing the articles. Hirari dropped to her seat again, biting her thumb's nail in frustration. Not only has she lost her camera, but she also did not want to deal with _huge_ sportsmen. And she also remembered the scary guy who glared at her while she was in a costume.

She snapped her fingers. "That's it! The costume!" She stood up from her seat and searched for the costume at the corner of their club room. With a mischievous smile on her face, she started laughing loudly, creeping out the other members near her. "I'm secretly an undercover spy." She said, creeping them out even more.

* * *

The girl had her arms crossed on the table and her head was down, hiding her face in her thin arms. "I'm sorry."

Tsukishima placed the paper down on the table after reading her second try. He wanted so badly to not involve himself, but he just _had_ to ask. He didn't want to spend the rest of his school year dealing with the girl's emotional problems and there was a high chance that she'd be in his group again. "So it says here, ' _In other words, even though we aren't familiar with everyone, we still communicate with them in some other way and that is how we coexist, even if the person doesn't like you._ '" He read the sentence out loud, looking at the girl. She shifted her head to listen to him. "In an essay, you're supposed to remove the ' _even if the person doesn't like you_ ' part. It's too personal. How many people don't like you, anyway?" He lectured her, his eyes scanning the paper once more.

He didn't notice how harsh his statement was. The girl looked up, although she did not move her head from her arms. "Almost everyone I meet, excluding Hirari."

The fact that she said those words with a normal expression and didn't even get hurt by his words surprised Tsukishima. He was the king of sarcasm and insults, and he knew how to piss someone off badly. He, however, had no intention to ruin the girl's mood but he actually expected for her to get angry, which didn't happen. "And it says here society forces people to fit in and throws away those who don't and… what does that have to do with communication?" Tsukishima dropped the subject and asked her once again. What he did not know was that the girl can connect _everything_ together no matter how far the subject is. That was how the president of the media club described her talent, although she _does_ base it on emotion. Tsukishima had just met the girl and he did not know her capabilities. She finally raised her head, yawning in reply.

"Because I can write the future, I wrote at the end of the essay how people force themselves to fit in the society by communication and in that future, people would finally accept the outcasts by fitting in the majority with the minority. So it's like a give and take kind of relationship." She answered. Tsukishima shot her a strange look. "I see." He answered simply, not wanting to listen to her absurd way of piecing up everything together, even though he admitted that she was smart enough to think of something deeper than it actually is. However, he knew that her kind of logic is something that isn't acceptable theoretically. The blonde went back to what he was doing; erasing the parts of her essay which he thought weren't going to be accepted by the teacher.

Mashumaro suddenly laughed, causing Tsukishima to look back at her. He was getting irritated again. "I can't seem to comprehend why you don't believe the beneficial information I have just told you." The way she said it was like she was accusing Tsukishima of being stupid and that irritated him more. "Why do you insist on being able to write magical things? That's irrational." He said, erasing another unnecessary sentence from the paper and replacing it with a more realistic one. "Because I _really_ can." The girl answered confidently.

Tsukishima blew away the eraser's residue from the paper and opened the library book they borrowed. "So I'm actually doing school work with a fortuneteller fairy?" He sarcastically remarked, as he flipped the pages of the book, looking for something to use as basis so he could fix the essay. Mashumaro leaned over as Tsukishima looked up. Their faces were only inches apart, and Mashumaro jumped aback when she realized it. "That was a human's reaction. If you're really a fairy, you'd fly." Tsukishima watched the girl fan herself to remove the heat off of her face. "I can fly, you know!" She insisted. "I flew off a bridge once."

Flipping the paper over to check the back side, Tsukishima snickered at her answer. He was about to say something else to rile her up, but she had already opened her mouth first. "I flew because I chased a ball while playing volleyball." She claimed. Tsukishima narrowed his eyes at her. "You play volleyball?" He asked her.

The girl's smile was immediately rubbed off her face. "No, but I used to watch Akiteru-san play."

There it is. He heard his brother's name again. He really didn't want to, but if it involved his family, he knew he had to. "What sort of relationship do you have with Akiteru?" He tried to be subtle about it, so as to not startle the girl into finding out the truth that she has been talking to Akiteru's brother the _whole_ time. "He was the person I wanted to change the future for." She answered, not censoring her words.

Silence. There was nothing but silence as Tsukishima remembered the memories of seeing his brother on the bleachers. His eyebrows furrowed and he accidentally dropped the pencil he was holding. "He was a good player, too. And he worked hard. But he never got to pl—"

"I know that, now shut up." Tsukishima cut her off before she could say something insensitive. Not that he'd blame her, anyway. She didn't even know that the guy she was idolizing on was actually his brother. "Let's go pass this." He stood up and picked up his things.

* * *

 _Blank_.

"… So, um…" Sugawara looked at Azumane who looked at Daichi who looked at Ennoshita who looked at Takeda who looked at Ukai who finally walked toward the visitor. "Woaaah, cool! We have a mascot to cheer us on!" Nishinoya reacted, jumping up and down, examining the mascot. "Wait, Noya-san! What if that mascot is actually a stalker of Kiyoko-san?" The bald guy, Tanaka cracked his knuckles. "Ah! Right! You! Who are you!?" Nishinoya jumped backward defensively, readying a fighting stance. Hinata's eyes were actually sparkling in amazement. "I didn't know Karasuno had a mascot!"

Ukai leaned his head closer to the mascot. It squeaked and flinched at the coach's invasion of personal space. Hirari, who was inside the mascot yet again, was still scared even though she self-assuredly went to the gym wearing the costume, scaring off the students along the way. "Crows _squeak_?" Kazuhito commented. "I say we take the head off to reveal its identity!" Both Nishinoya and Tanaka jumped at the mascot, accidentally making the person inside cry. Luckily, before they even reach it, Daichi had already implanted his hand mark on their faces. "You guys! That's just rude!" Sugawara scolded.

"Can he stay and watch? Can he? Please? Mascots are made for cheering, right?" Hinata excitedly suggested, still overwhelmed by the fact that Karasuno _had_ a mascot. Ukai rubbed the back of his head and finally gave in. "Well, as long as our visitor doesn't disrupt practice, I guess it's fine." He then blew his whistle. "Continue with the practice!"

"Yes, sir!"

Ukai watched the players scramble on court. That's when he noticed that Kageyama was nowhere to be found. "Where's Kageyama?" He asked the club manager, Shimizu. The bespectacled girl shrugged her shoulders in a feminine fashion. At that coincidental moment, Kageyama finally entered the gym. "Hey! Where have you been!? It's weird for you to be late!" Hinata was the first to see him and immediately gave him a wild greeting. "Ha!? I just went to the restroom, you du—" Kageyama wasn't able to finish his sentence when his leg accidentally bumped into something. He looked down and saw a giant crow sitting on the gym floor. His hand accidentally crushed the water bottle he was holding. "Hey! Kageyama! Where's the 'dumbass' part? You're not Kageyama if you don't say that part!" Hinata sniggered, and since Yamaguchi did not have Tsukishima with him at the moment, he sniggered along with Hinata, too.

Kageyama twitched his eyes. Either he was hallucinating or everyone _else_ was completely ignoring the giant crow right by his feet. He wanted so badly to ask if starting now, he'd walk by the gym door everyday, and lying beside the entrance of his second home would be the giant black thing. Suddenly, the crow moved and seemed to face him. Then it flinched _and_ squeaked. He stepped backward in surprise and looked at Hinata with a 'wtf' expression.

Hinata tilted his head with a big smile on his face. Kageyama did the same, but his version had narrowed eyes, a frown, and it was more awkward since it was robotic. "Oi, are you holding back out of courtesy? Are you sick?" Hinata asked. Kageyama only tilted his head further. "Kageyama! Get on the court! What are you two nutheads doing!?" Daichi scolded. Kageyama's attention turned to Ukai, awaiting the coach's orders. "Go warm up, Kageyama. Let me know if something's bothering you during the warm-up. I can ask someone to assist you." Ukai commanded.

Kageyama's mouth was now hung agape. Are they really ignoring the weird thing by the doorway or do they need him to spit out _what's_ bothering him?

He opened his mouth, about to complain about something. "… Yes, coach!" Was the only thing that came out of his mouth.


	5. Chapter 5 The Moment of Truth

" _Akiteru!" A girl with shoulder-length black hair shouted. She pulled Akiteru from the middle of the three hooligans. "What are you doing!? Don't give up! This is only high school, Akiteru! What would Kei say if he finds out you gave up on your life just for failing him? For not being a regular in volleyball? Your brother is still young, Aki! He's going to bring the guilt for the rest of his life!" She shook his shoulders, trying to snap him back into reality. "Kei will blame himself, Aki! Don't do this to your brother, please!"_

 _A little girl watched from the sidelines. Her eyes were widened. Her lips were quivering. She was shaking. "You are also still young, Akiteru! We are! It's because this happened to you that you have to make up for it in the fut—" The little girl saw with her own eyes how the woman was stabbed and killed._

 _She saw it._

" _SHIORI!" A devastated cry came out of Akiteru's mouth._

* * *

A whistle signaled break time.

"Here, water!" The other manager, Yachi, handed Kageyama another bottle of water. "Oi, Kageyama! What's wrong with you? Your tosses haven't been reaching my hand well lately!" Hinata complained, scowling at Kageyama. The latter looked back and forth from Hinata to the humanoid crow by the doorway. Even though its identity has not yet been revealed, Kageyama could feel the crow watching them. "Sorry." Kageyama answered, making Hinata and some of the others snap their heads at him in shock. "H-He apologized." Yamaguchi mumbled. "… I'll think before I forgive you!" Hinata retorted, making Kageyama smack his head in reply.

Hinata noticed Kageyama's eyes moving to and fro. "Hey… stop peeking around like that. An unfocused Kageyama is a defected Kageyama." He told him. "W-Why are you making it sound like Kageyama's a machine?" Azumane commented from the sidelines.

Kageyama blinked once. Twice.

"Am I not supposed to look or am I the only one who can see that there's a distracting object to my right?" He watched the crow stand up from the floor, only to end up stumbling down again. Hinata backed away with a horrified facial expression. "Y-You can see ghosts, Kageyama?" He asked. "You moron! I didn't bring it up to discuss spirituality during our break!" The raven-haired boy yelled, disturbed by the fact that the crow was now walking towards them. He really didn't know why his teammates were just ignoring the giant object. He let out a sigh to calm his senses down.

He glared at Hinata, who winced at his sudden mood swing. "Here's what's bothering me!" Kageyama roughly tapped a hand at the crow's back. The crow swung for a second and it struggled to regain its balance. "… Are you scared of birds, Kageyama?" Hinata asked again, angering Kageyama further. "I'M ASKING WHAT THE HECK IS THIS!?" He repeatedly smacked his hand on the crow's back. "THIS THING LEFT YESTERDAY! WHY IS IT BACK?" The girl inside the crow got pissed at the boy's violence and she flapped her wings to hit him back. "Ow! You bastard!" Kageyama's hand made its way to his head.

"I'm here. Sorry for being late." Tsukishima entered the gym. The blonde looked at Kageyama and then at the giant crow, dumbfounded. But like the others, Tsukishima chose to ignore it. Kageyama pointed at Tsukishima then faced Hinata again. "SEE WHAT I MEAN? You're _all_ ignoring the fact that there's a weirdly disturbing giant chibi humanoid crow among us!" Kageyama accused, hitting the crow's back once more. "You said 'chibi' and 'giant' in one sentence, King." Tsukishima interrupted while doing his warm-up on the sidelines. "Great! First the video camera, now this huge crow came back." Kageyama massaged his temples in annoyance.

Upon hearing the word 'video camera', Hirari completely forgot about hiding her identity. "That is classified as a Level 4 hostility! Putting my weapon in your custody, imprinting your hands on my spinal, and instilling the description of 'chibi' and 'giant' on me!" A girl's muffled voice caught everyone's attention. The ones were already practicing dropped the balls, Tsukishima stopped his warm-up, the others stared dumbly at the mascot, and Kageyama looked even more bewildered than he usually was when he _is_ bewildered. There was an awkward silence.

Hirari regretted that.

"It was a girl?" Sugawara was the first to break the silence. "Oh! So it's a girl! False alarm, Noya-san!" Tanaka and Nishinoya high-fived. Kageyama looked at Hinata once more. "Hey. Translate it." He ordered. "HA!? Why me?" Hinata complained. "She said 'it's a pleasure to meet you'." Tanaka answered again. "Wow. Such excellent translation skills." Tsukishima walked toward the bunch to join in the fun. Yamaguchi chuckled. "What'd you say, you bastard?" Tanaka growled at the blonde.

Tsukishima calmly walked to the girl. He recognized the voice, so it was a given that he already knew who it was the moment it spoke. "This is my classmate." He introduced for the sole reason of shutting everyone up. "Classmate? What do you mean 'classmate'?" Kageyama was still unable to believe that it was human. "I meant exactly what I said, King, unless you're too dumb to comprehend." Tsukishima retorted. "What did you say, you bastard!? You expect me to believe that _this_ ," He smacked the crow's back again. "Is a student from the college preparatory class?"

"Kageyama… you do realize that you've been hitting a girl all this time, right?" Sugawara held out his hands in front of him to calm Kageyama down. The sudden realization made Kageyama blush and walk quietly away from the crow beside him until he reached a considerable distance. "It must be nice being a Kageyama. I can freak out even about the most pointless things in the universe!" Nishinoya loudly declared. "You're already a pointless person, even if you're not a Kageyama." Daichi reminded him. " _A_ Kageyama? So Kageyama's a common noun now?" Yamaguchi asked.

Tanaka, Nishinoya, and Hinata looked at the freckled boy in curiosity. "What's a common noun?" They asked. "I knew they were going to ask." Tsukishima said again, leading the three idiots to start yelling at him. "Yeah, it must be nice _being_ Kageyama. There was this one time I freaked out over something as normal as a sale in the local sports shop." Azumane rubbed the back of his head shyly. "Yeah, at least Kageyama freaks out over 'abnormal' stuff." Ennoshita said. Meanwhile, Kageyama was getting more and more distracted at the moment. The crow got closer to him again and started smacking his back with its wing, letting out a 'caw caw' each smack.

Hinata put his arms on his hips and made a face at Kageyama. "I don't get why you don't like it, but it seems to like you." The shorter boy told him. Another smack on Kageyama's back from the crow. "… Has no one really realized that it's a _girl_ they're talking about?" Sugawara sighed, giving up on talking to them. Another smack on Kageyama's back. "They forgot your introduction, Tsuki." Yamaguchi looked apologetic. Another smack. "HEY! Are you guys going to practice or not!?" Ukai finally scolded them. Another sm—

"In any case, STOP THAT!" Kageyama yelled, grabbing the wing that has been smacking him repeatedly making the girl lose her balance and fall flat on the floor. A loud yelp was heard as the crow hit the gym floor. The crow was moving and rolling around, unable to stand up. "YOU IDIOT! THAT'S A _GIRL_! A _GIRL!_ " Daichi shouted, silencing everyone out of fear for the captain. Whimpers and frustrated yowls were heard from the girl as she struggled to get out of the costume. "I-I forgot…" Kageyama said, finally calming down. Hirari was finally able to stand up and she quickly ran outside. "What was that guy's problem?" She complained, but then she remembered that it was her who said something weird and incomprehensible earlier. She walked to the back of the gym and sat down on the grass.

Meanwhile, everyone was forcing Kageyama to apologize, which he was too humiliated to do. "If you don't apologize to the girl, I'll kick you out of the gym again!" Daichi threatened. "Oh. Here it comes." Tsukishima side-commented. Clenching his fists, Kageyama stomped outside the gym and looked for the crow mascot. When he finally found her, the mascot shied away. They stared at each other.

"Sorry." Kageyama finally blurted out.

It was already night time and Kageyama barely practiced, but he knew he'd only get kicked out if he didn't do anything. He sat down next to her in the grass. Hirari started shaking, as she was scared of the boy. There was an awkward silence between them, as Kageyama ran his hands through his bangs, trying to think of something to say. "Y-You have nice eyes." He looked at the crow's rather angry eyes. The girl inside the mascot, however, stared at him blankly. She didn't know if she should be flattered or embarrassed. "I-I found a video camera… but I don't know who owns it." He tried hard to think of the topic, but only the random camera came into his mind. Hirari opened her mouth to say something, but Kageyama beat her to it.

"The owner's teammates are turning against her… I think they said they're from the Media Club." The boy told her. The startled girl's eyes widened when she found out that Kageyama looked into her videos. She bit her lip and her heartbeat rung into her ears. However, she also raised an eyebrow at his peculiar term. "I don't think the word 'teammate' should be used on clubs that aren't related to sports." The girl talked again. Kageyama froze to the spot when he heard her voice. He stood up and stretched. The girl took the time to calm herself down. The costume was getting too stuffy again. "Um… is it okay if you turn around first? I'm having a hard time breathing in here." She requested.

Without retorting, he turned around and waited for the girl to take the costume off. Hirari stood up clumsily and took off the head first. Then she moved her arms inside to push the costume down. It was a good thing she was still wearing her uniform. "You have the same voice." Kageyama suddenly said, his back still turned towards her. Hirari stood rooted to the spot. "I kinda relate to the owner since when I was in Junior High, and tossed to a team mate, they had already abandoned me." Hirari watched as Kageyama looked up at the sky. "But I still like volleyball. The owner of the camera should realize it one day, too. You don't win alone, that's all. You don't even have to be alone in the first place."

The reason why Kageyama was comfortable with talking about it was because he was still holding on to the fact that he's only talking a mascot.

He didn't know that the girl's eyes were already brimming with tears.

Hirari unconsciously went towards Kageyama and put her hand on his shoulders, his back still facing towards her. "Don't turn around." She ordered, slowly pushing Kageyama down with her hands on his shoulders until he was sitting on the ground again. "Hey! What're you—" The boy complained but was cut off when Hirari placed something to cover his face. It was the mascot's head. Kageyama gritted his teeth, wondering what the girl was up to now. "Is this a part of your revenge for—" He couldn't continue again when he felt a weight on his head.

He couldn't see it, but Hirari was already hugging the mascot's head which covered his, resting her own on it. "Thank you." She whispered.

There it is again. The heartbreaking voice. He didn't want to jump into conclusions and think that it was the same girl from the video. People's voices sound different when recorded, too. Kageyama lifted his hands to remove the costume from his head, but when he turned around, she wasn't there anymore.

* * *

The girl ran along the hallways with a bread slice between her lips. She almost tripped and fell, but she continued running to regain her balance. Still running, she used her hand to shove the bread into her mouth, not noticing a certain black-haired boy walking towards his classroom. He looked to his side, only to find a girl rushing as if she was being chased by a horse. "Ga-!?"

 _Splash_.

Kageyama's water bottle came flying upward, showering them with the water from inside it. Hirari accidentally opened her mouth to gasp, dropping the bread on Kageyama's face.

They fell down in an awkward position, both wet with water, with Hirari on top, and a piece of bread on Kageyama's face.

And the water bottle fell from the air, hitting Hirari on the head. The other students in the hallway stared at them blankly, and the only sound that can be heard was the ringing bell. As soon as the bell stopped, an eerie silence disturbed their senses.

"…"

"…"

"G-Get off of me!"

"…!? But _you_ 're the one who's on _me._ "

Hirari turned pale as a ghost. She jumped away from him and realized that it was Kageyama. Even though she knew that he had not seen her face yet outside of the mascot, she still freaked out. "I'M SORRY!" She cried before standing up in a panicked way and dashing towards her classroom. She didn't even bother to pick up the bread from Kageyama's forehead, leaving him with a slightly disgusted look on his face. He sat upright, accidentally glaring at the other students before making his way to his classroom with a heated face. That was really embarrassing, even for him.

"Who knew that Ishikawa can act like a normal girl, too? I thought she was all stalking and drawing." Kageyama eavesdropped upon a conversation of some students in the hallway. He stopped in his tracks.

" _Ishikawa. Ishikawa. Where have I heard that name before?"_

He glanced to the girl who has already stopped running and was panting in front of a classroom door. She turned her head, looking back at him from afar, blushed and hurriedly went inside her room, thankful that the teacher wasn't there yet.

She pondered about how she would retrieve her camera from the boy.

Classes started as usual. Thankfully, Tsukishima didn't have to deal with the two girls, and for some reason, the girls were awfully quiet today. What he didn't know was that Hirari came home late last night since she made her reports to the Media Club after observing the volleyball club in a mascot costume. However, the president was not satisfied with just 'they are always arguing' and 'there's a bald guy and there's also this guy who was repeatedly smacking my back so I smacked him, too.' Hirari remembered the president massaging her temples and telling her that Mashumaro may be an emotion-based writer but she was definitely better than Hirari in describing people.

Hirari did not get hurt, though. She knew that Mashumaro had a knack for writing since they were kids and she never saw the boys play seriously yet so she thought of going again later to check. Mashumaro was asleep on her desk while taking the quiz. Tsukishima didn't care, though, although he was slightly curious as to _how_ the girl got such good grades despite spacing out _and_ sleeping during quizzes.

When the teacher announced the scores, Mashumaro got the highest, pissing off some of the top students in class. How did a girl who was asleep for 90% of the exam time pass with high scores?

Although it actually creeped the heck out of Tsukishima, he was strangely used to the girl's odd habits already. It was probably because he experienced it personally by staying in the library with her for approximately two hours, just fixing the essay she poured all her heart and soul into. They never talked again for the rest of the day.

And he never asked again why she knows his brother.

"Alright, class. We're going to do an activity that can help us strengthen bonds within our classroom to make it easier for all of you to do group work." The male teacher announced. "First, pick a person here in the room who knows you the best. And I mean the _best_."

It was all automatic as friends of all types looked at each other in the eyes, even if their seats are across the room. Of course, the first thing Mashumaro did was kick under Hirari's seat, making the latter jump. She turned around and glared daggers at her friend, but Mashumaro just laughed and called her "a glaring bunny that lost its carrot".

Yamaguchi immediately ran excitedly towards Tsuki, calling him by his nickname twice. "Shut up, Yamaguchi." Tsukishima muttered with a bored face. When everyone finally got ahold of their partners, the teacher clapped his hands. "Well done! Now… here's what's next, choose the pair you want to start the activity with. Don't worry! This is going to be fantastic." The teacher ordered. Tsukishima looked around the room, his eyes stopping when he saw Mashumaro clinging to Hirari as if she was going to die. "W-We have to interact with strangers?" She asked, her voice shaky. Hirari was smiling, though. "Well, yeah. They're our classmates. Don't you want that? I think it's nice."

Just by that short conversation, Tsukishima found the difference between the two.

Although both girls seemed to get along well with others, their weirdness makes some avoid them and even hate them. Mashumaro liked talking, but she seemed to be more comfortable when she's in a small group of people rather than within a jungle of human beings. Hirari didn't seem to mind people, though.

"Ishikawa and… um…" Yamaguchi raised his hand at the teacher. Tsukishima looked at him and glared, wanting to ask what was he thinking picking the two troublesome girls who almost involved him in their odd way to get good grades?

Hirari looked surprise when someone actually picked them. "Um… her name's Kaji Mashumaro, by the way." She told Yamaguchi with a gentle smile. Tsukishima crossed his hand over his chest, thinking. Why was she named 'marshmallow'? And this was also the first time he heard her name. Was it 'Kaji' written as 'fire' or was it written with the kanji for 'rubber'? He winced at the thought that her name could actually mean 'Fire Marshmallow'. As far as he is concerned, she is officially a human _s'more_.

Before he could protest, the teacher had already approved. He glared at Yamaguchi once again, and the latter sheepishly rubbed the back of his head and chuckled nervously. "Sorry, Tsuki."

They formed their seats into a circle. Tsukishima still refused to say a word to them. Yamaguchi has somehow taken a liking to the girls, after seeing Mashumaro get bullied by Minori the other day. He knew what it felt like, so he actually cared. Also, he remembered Tsukishima mentioning to him about how the girls were disliked by many, although that was just a one-time conversation. "Now, everyone, get a piece of paper and write a word that describes you the most."

They wrote in silence. "Now after that, close your eyes and put your hands on your lap. I'll give the signal to open them again. No peeking!" The teacher ordered. They did as told and heard the teacher's footsteps walking around the room. Tsukishima felt a hand brush lightly against his shoulder and concluded that the teacher must have taken their papers. "Okay, now open them!"

They all opened their eyes and to their surprise, the papers were still on their tables. They looked stupidly at the teacher. "Those aren't your papers, by the way. Those are the papers of one of your groupmates. It is up to you to guess who it is."

Mashumaro stared hard at the paper. She already knew whose paper it was. The word was _'Cowardly_ '. For the first time in a long time, the girl actually felt sad as she looked at Hirari from the corner of her eye. _"This is hers. I know her too well."_ She thought.

Yamaguchi, too, knew whose paper he got. _'I don't care_ '. It wasn't even in one word and he thought that Tsukishima probably knew that the teacher wasn't going to give them grades for the 'pointless' activity, anyway.

Hirari was literally gawking at hers. She looked to and fro at Yamaguchi then at Tsukishima. She didn't know anything about them, how was she going to guess? She pursed her lips. _'Shy'._ Mashumaro is an introvert, but she's not shy. She knew that since the latter has a habit of telling people about her superpowers even when she had just met them. Although she _is_ scared of being alone within groups of people. Tsukishima wasn't the shy type so she concluded that the paper must be Yamaguchi's.

Tsukishima read the word with a blank expression. He glanced at both Hirari and Mashumaro every now and then, wondering which of them wrote it. Although he didn't want to care, the word seemed dreadfully familiar to him. _'Pathetic'_. He knew Yamaguchi's penmanship so he was out of the question and Tsukishima was down to two possible suspects.

Unfortunately, before he could ask, the teacher told the partners to choose another pair until everyone in class has already chosen all pairs. Mashumaro had a reason for writing that and for the first time in this class, she refused to even smile. Reading Hirari's description to herself had taken a toll on her feelings.

Whatever happened between Minori, Mashumaro, and Hirari during their turn is up to your imagination.

The activity completely ruined Mashumaro's mood.

It didn't take long until the final period ended. Yamaguchi and Tsukishima packed up their stuff and checked if they brought their volleyball materials. As they left the room, Tsukishima went out at the same time as Mashumaro, their shoulders accidentally bumping. He walked backward, letting the girl get out first. Without looking at him, the girl flashed a hurtful smile and mumbled.

"Pathetic."

Tsukishima's breath hitched. She then disappeared out the door.

He finally knew whose paper he got earlier.

* * *

"Excuse me, sensei. But do you have a student called 'Ishikawa'?"

The noodles from his chopsticks dropped back into the cup he was holding. The teacher blinked his eyes at Kageyama. It was the first time the boy came into the faculty room to ask something which isn't related to volleyball matches against certain schools. "K-Kageyama? You're here? I-I mean, sorry! You usually go straight to the gym after classes so… never mind. Why?" Takeda almost dropped the cup but he managed to save it before he'd get _noodle-lized_. "The video camera from before, I think its owner is a girl named Ishikawa. There's a video on it that says so. I just thought I'd return it." Kageyama explained.

"Hmm… Ishikawa… I don't think I had a student with that name, however, the name does sound familiar. Anyway, do you want to walk to the gym while talking about it?" Takeda suggested. "Thank you!" Kageyama bowed down quickly in respect.

As they walked, Kageyama helped the teacher carry his bag and files. "You see, when I was a new teacher here in Karasuno, I think I recalled a rumor from one of the old teachers. They said it was true, though." Takeda started the story. When they reached the stairs, Takeda unfortunately tripped and the books he was carrying scattered all over the stairs. "Ah!" Both of them started picking up the books one by one. "Sorry, Kageyama." The teacher apologized. "Anyway, the incident is somehow related to volleyball."

Kageyama stopped picking up the books upon hearing 'volleyball'. He snapped his head at Takeda, attentively listening. "You see, at the time of the Little Giant, the club had a female manager. Everyone liked that manager, since she had this passion for the sport although she does not play. She was kind of like a mother to all of them." Takeda continued. "After one of their major matches, the manager was ordered by former coach Ukai to escort a bus to the school to pick up the players. However, an accident happened along the way." The teacher paused. Kageyama's eyes widened.

"Back then, the only way to the stadium was to drive through a narrow road by a cliff. The bus crossed paths with another bus and they collided. The Karasuno's bus was saved but the other bus was dangerously sliding off the cliff." The teacher finished picking up his books and stood up. "That other bus had elementary students inside, coming home from their field trip."

Kageyama couldn't move a muscle. His mouth hung agape and his grip on the books tightened.

"It was a good thing that the teacher and driver were able to save most of the students, but the bus had already started slipping off its spot. A little girl was left inside. Everyone thought it was all over, until the manager of the Karasuno volleyball club dashed to save the girl by grabbing her arm and barely being able to jump off the bus as it crashed down the cliff. The manager's name was… Hanamiya Shiori, I think?" The teacher continued. He paused to get his books from Kageyama's hands as the setter stood up.

"They said that the little girl's name was Ishikawa Hirari."


	6. Chapter 6 Pathetique

_The bus swerved, its wheels slipping off the cliff. "There's one more child!" The teacher screeched. All the men, including the bus driver from the Karasuno volleyball club went to rush back inside. The bus slipped further. Everyone hesitated, fear taking over their hearts._

 _Suddenly, a woman jumped into the bus and saw the little girl hanging on for dear life on the front seat of the bus. "Help me!" She exclaimed. "Hang on!" The woman maneuvered through the bus, avoiding the sliding glass shards of the window. The cliff gave in, but at the same time, the woman managed to grab on to the little girl before she jumped out of the bus._

 _The bus fell down and multiplied into scraps of metal. Her feet didn't make it on safe ground, but her hand did._

 _Her bleeding hand clung tightly on the edge of the cliff, her other hand carrying the little girl as she softly cried on her shoulders. "Are you okay!?" All the adults ran towards her to pull her up. She gently cradled the little girl. "You're safe now." She comforted the crying girl. The little girl looked up at her with tearful eyes, unable to speak. In the little girl's eyes, the high schooler was a superhero. "I'm Shiori. What's your name, child?" The older girl laughed, patting the younger one gently on the head. She hesitantly opened her mouth to say something, but another female child escaped from the teacher's hands. "Jiru! Jiru!" The other girl was also crying. "Maro!"_

 _Shiori watched as the two friends reunited. "Are you okay? Why didn't you jump with me!?" The second girl panicked. "Oh, so your names are Jiru and Maro? How cute!" Shiori laughed._

" _Thank you so much, Shiori-san!"_

 _It was not long after that an ambulance finally came._

* * *

"Oh, I forgot my book." Tsukishima stopped in his tracks on their way to the gym. Yamaguchi worriedly looked at the tall blonde. "Where did you leave it?" He asked. Tsukishima shifted his gaze for a second, thinking. "I'll check the classroom. Go on ahead without me." He told Yamaguchi before setting off. The hallways were almost empty because most of the students have already gone to their respective clubs. He put his hands inside his pockets, and finally reached the stairs.

As he went up, he heard a voice from the middle ground between the two connecting staircases. He froze on the spot.

Meanwhile, halfway down the stairs was Takeda and Kageyama. Takeda was gazing down on one of the windows lined up beside the staircase while taking the books from Kageyama's arms. "They said that the little girl's name was Ishikawa Hirari." Kageyama bit his lip, not knowing how to react. He thought about the video again, anger brewing in his mind. He only asked for the name so he could return the camera, but he did not expect that the certain name could put his emotions in a swirl. The name had a past in it, and he couldn't help it but listen to the story.

Deep inside, he knew the story was going to be related to volleyball. He can't let such emotions pass him by like the summer breeze. "Do you know anything else, sensei?" Kageyama asked. The teacher sighed, trying to remember the story. "It was an interesting story, actually. So I haven't actually forgotten all the details." He answered, pausing. "The manager, Shiori, was somehow really close to this certain bench player, since the guy used to stay behind even though practices were over, so he could become a regular. Unfortunately, I think he never became one." Takeda sighed again, feeling sorry. "You see, one of the teachers told me that she always saw that manager taking the two little girls to Karasuno so they could watch volleyball. There are also days when the little girls went by themselves."

" _Shiori-san, Shiori-san. What is volleyball?" Hirari asked, tugging at the older girl's sleeve. Shiori smiled at both her and Mashumaro. "You'll see when we get there." She reassured the two girls, holding their hands as they walked into the gym of Karasuno. "It's still early morning so I don't think the boys are here yet, though." She chuckled jokingly. When they finally reached the gym, Shiori was surprised to see the door already open. She peeked inside and sighed with a smile. "You're always a little excited to practice, Akiteru."_

 _Mashumaro and Hirari looked at each other and blinked in confusion. They clung to Shiori's shirt, Hirari on the right side and Mashumaro on the left, and were astounded by what they saw._

 _A high school boy with light brown hair tossed the ball high up and served it towards the other court. Hirari freaked out at the strong serve and shuddered at the thought of her arms breaking. However, Mashumaro's eyes sparkled with joy. "Wow!" The latter reacted, catching the boy's attention. "Oh, you brought visitors! Hello!" The high school boy joyfully ran towards the girls. He bent down and held out his hand. "Tsukishima Akiteru. Nice to meet you! Woah, you girls are probably the same age as my little brother!" He happily declared. Mashumaro hid behind Shiori. Akiteru noticed the shy reaction and laughed it off._

" _Maro, there's no need to be afraid. He may look like a creep, but he's actually nice." Shiori teased. Akiteru pouted. "Hey! Don't say that in front of them!" He scolded her, and then he kneeled on the gym floor, focusing on Mashumaro. "Do you like volleyball?" He asked her._

 _Mashumaro peeked at him from behind Shiori. "It's my first time seeing it, sir." She told him. "Eh? Calling me 'sir' is making me feel old! So how was it? Seeing someone spike for the first time, I mean?" Akiteru was as enthusiastic as ever, his personality inspiring the little girl in front of him in an instant. "… It… It was breathtaking."_

"' _Breathtaking' seems like a deep word for someone your age! I bet you'd make a good writer if you always speak like that. So what's your name?"_

The teacher stopped to look at Kageyama. "Well, at least that's what the teacher told me. She saw the event personally since she used to be the club advisor of the team and she was also the one who opens the gym for that certain bench player." Takeda explained. "I can't recall much, but I think they were all involved in another accident a year after that."

Kageyama clearly looked down at his feet. "What happened in the next accident?" He asked for the last time. Takeda pursed his lips and looked away from Kageyama's eyes. "Shiori… died. She was murdered. I-I don't know the whole story so it's best if you ask the former advisor, the teacher who told me. You can find her in the faculty room. Look for Hayashi-sensei. She's old, but her memory's great."

Meanwhile, leaning on the lower staircase, eavesdropping on their conversation was a blonde called Tsukishima Kei. His eyebrows furrowed, as he went downstairs. He walked along the hallway in an angry manner. At the back of his mind, he could remember how a certain girl claimed that she could write the future, was a fairy, and how she flew. "… You idiot." He muttered. He was walking so fast, that when the door to a room opened, he accidentally bumped into the girl who went outside. The said girl 'eep'd', clutching her sketchpad to her chest. "T-Tsukishima!" She said. Tsukishima looked at Hirari from head to toe, making her feel insecure. "I-Is there something on my face?" She asked. "Nothing." Tsukishima answered.

Hirari looked around, thinking of an excuse to leave. For some reason, Tsukishima's aura was making her feel uneasy. "I… um… I have some stuff to do… so…" She rambled on, turning her back on Tsukishima, awkwardly walking away from him.

"Tsukishima Akiteru is my brother, just in case you don't know."

The girl's last step echoed in the corridor. She gasped softly, her heartbeat stopping. Her shoulder started shaking and her eyes widening with terror. Without turning around to look at Tsukishima, she spoke. "… So you know about it, huh?" She asked. She didn't look at him because she didn't want him to see her crying. "Just recently. I heard that the manager who was close to my brother passed away."

Hirari dropped her sketchpad on the floor and looked back at Tsukishima with infuriated eyes. "She didn't _just_ pass away! She was killed! I saw it! I… I saw it with my own eyes…" Her voice cracked as she started sobbing. It was a good thing that they were the only ones in that area at the moment. Tsukishima just stood there, watching her let it all out. He was smart enough to know when to leave a person alone. "So what happened?"

"… I was a coward. I was always running away. I was always being saved."

" _Look at all those bench players! So stupid! They shouldn't have joined this strong school if they are not needed!" A young boy yelled out. His companions laughed with him. It was then that the kids noticed two girls watching on the sidelines. "I hope Akiteru-san plays in the next game." Mashumaro's forehead creased with worry. Hirari nodded in reply. "Hey!" The boy called out to them. The two girls jumped back, scared. Mashumaro immediately went in front of Hirari. "Take them to the park near the bridge." The boy ordered his fellow bullies._

" _Let go!"_

" _Stop it!"_

 _The two girls struggled to get away, but there was no chance for them to break free from the bullies. The bullies were also a grade older than them. The girls felt powerless. Mashumaro looked at Hirari, who was being brutally pushed towards the exit. When the bullies finally let their guard down, Mashumaro broke one of her hands free and gave the other bully a strong slap. Then she ran towards the boy who was pushing Hirari and tackled him to the ground. "Run, Hirari! Get help!" She yelled, but was pushed by the bully until she painfully hit the ground. "Hurry!"_

 _Hirari's hands trembled, and she quickly ran. She ran as far as she can into the sea of people. "W-Where are the doors to the court? I have to get Shiori-san!" She panicked, not paying attention to anything else but her way to safety. She was getting squished by the thousands of spectators, until she finally reached a door. She was about to run to the court, but her hand was grabbed by a person behind her. "Gotcha! Think you can run away just like that, you weakling?" The bully caught up to her. She screamed in both pain and distress._

" _HEY! What are you doing!? Let go of her!" A familiar voice scolded. "Ugh." The bully let go of Hirari's arms and ran away. Hirari sat on the ground, crying. "Jiru! What happened? Where's Maro?" Shiori comforted the girl. Hirari stood up and grabbed both Shiori's hands. "Shiori-san! Maro's in trouble!"_

The teacher smiled at Kageyama as he bowed down. "Ah, I know you. You're the talented new setter in the Karasuno volleyball team. But I don't understand why you want to know what happened to Shiori. That girl was really kind, not one of us could accept it when we heard the news." The old lady stood up and made her way to the water dispenser with a cup on-hand. Kageyama just stood there, patiently waiting. "… I want to know if they blamed volleyball for it…" He admitted quietly, a little nervous. Hayashi laughed at the young boy. "Very well. You see, the case was something that the police couldn't solve. In the end, the culprits were not captured, all because the witness was just a young girl who couldn't even remember the faces of the assailants."

 _Another ball was thrown at Maro's frail body. She was already weak and couldn't stand up. "Hey! I thought you said you'd prove that your idol was a great player? Why can't you do what he taught you, then? Toss the ball again!" The boy taunted her and called for a toss. A girl from the side tossed a ball upward and the leader of the bullies spiked it towards Mashumaro. However, the ball hit her already-bruised arms again._

 _Even at the brink of collapsing, Mashumaro still clung tightly to her beliefs. "Akiteru-san… told me he'd become the ace. He told me that I was going to be a great writer and that someday I'll write about him and his volleyball story! I believe Akiteru-san! I believe that all his dreams will come true in the future!"_

 _The bullies laughed. "All you're talking about is Akiteru this, Akiteru that. We had a deal, remember? If you can't receive this last spike, then everything you said will officially be lies!" The boy nodded to the setter. The girl tossed the ball one last time. And as the boy spiked it, Mashumaro held out her hands in front of her face._

The wind blew upon her as she stood at the edge of the bridge, looking down at the river. Not a day passed by that she didn't look down on that same spot, memories flooding in too fast that made it harder for her to recall. She couldn't remember the last time she felt strong.

She smiled. "Pathetic."

 _She clutched her wrist in pain. The spike was strong enough to break it, but unfortunately, the ball bounced to the river nearby. "Hey! You dumb girl! Chase after it!" The boy pushed her, forcing her to run after the flying ball. She stopped when she reached the edge of the bridge, looking down at the river. Before the ball could completely fall into the waters, she jumped._

Hirari stood up, dusting her skirt and picking up her sketchpad. She looked at Tsukishima who had a dangerous expression on his face. Her words echoed in his head and it frustrated him.

" _I can fly, you know! I flew off a bridge once. I flew because I chased a ball while playing volleyball."_

It frustrated him that there was someone else who experienced the pain of seeing Akiteru on the bleachers.

But it angered him more knowing that she was there in his brother's _every_ game, only to end up finding him on the bleachers. It angered him knowing that even though she knew that his brother was lying, she still went on with it, insisting that it will all come true 'in the future'. It angered him greatly.

" _He was the person I wanted to change the future for."_

It angered him how much she idolized him. It angered him how much the girl reminded him of his own brother. She couldn't change the future, he was sure of it now. "Maro-chan tried to prove her story but obviously failed." Hirari continued. "When she jumped off the bridge, she ended up on the shallow part; breaking her leg and the worst part… she got stabbed by a sharp rock when she fell. She got hospitalized right after."

Tsukishima's eyes narrowed further. "…That's absurd…" He managed to say, trying hard to keep his cool. She lied to him when she said she was 'playing' volleyball. She wasn't playing at all. She was being forced to receive spikes and broke her wrist in the process. She lied to him when she said she could fly. "… You can't fly at all…" Tsukishima muttered again, his thoughts getting all jumbled up. He didn't care. He wasn't supposed to care.

When he saw his brother in the bleachers, he wanted to stop caring. And now, he met a girl who strangely believes in everything his brother believed in. How was he supposed to _not care_ when there's someone else who's taking the blame for something that he, himself, was the root cause of?

At that moment, Tsukishima blamed no one but himself. Akiteru was just a victim of dreams and ambition. Tsukishima Kei knew that if only he didn't have high expectations of his brother, Akiteru wouldn't have to lie. He wouldn't have to get blinded by dreams and hope… and the _future_.

" _I can write the future, you know!"_

His hands balled into fists. That incident was nothing but his fault… so why was there someone else who blamed herself for it? Why was there someone else who had to feel **pathetic** for something she had no fault in? He inhaled, trying to calm down. It was then that Hirari spoke once again.

"… It's not her fault. It was mine. I was weak… I couldn't protect my friend and Shiori-san…"

 _Hirari's eyes widened when she saw an ambulance by the river. "Excuse me, please let us through!" Shiori pulled Hirari along so they could see through the crowd. They were both fear-stricken when they saw Mashumaro being carried on the stretcher. "What happened!?" Shiori asked everyone, but no one knew the answer. It was then when Shiori saw the crying children, who she recognized as the bullies, getting asked by the police about the event. "We're sorry! We didn't know this would happen!" The leader of the bullies was wailing._

 _It was a long way to the hospital, but Shiori sacrificed the volleyball game for a child's life once again. "How is she, doctor?" She asked. The doctor had a troubled look on his face. "… She's lost too much blood. We need to find a donor as soon as possible." Shiori bit her lip and showed her arms to the doctor. "I'm healthy enough to be a donor, right? What is her blood type?" She asked again._

"You see, Shiori saved a child's life once again, even though she knew that she had an important game the day after that." The teacher paused. "Unfortunately, Akiteru still never got to play, even though it's his last game. What you said about the girls blaming volleyball for their misfortunes may be possible."

Kageyama's fist unconsciously punched the wall of the faculty room. He didn't even know the girl, why was he so worked up about it? He was confused and scared. Just like that time when he tossed to _no one_. It was scary.

But he never blamed volleyball, so he didn't understand why the girl he didn't even know personally had to do that. "The police tried to ask the only witness, a young child named Ishikawa Hirari, about how the murderers looked like."

 _Hirari chased after Shiori. It didn't take a while before she found her shaking Akiteru's shoulders. "Don't do this to your brother, please!" Shiori was yelling at him. Hirari was about to call them, when suddenly, a man with a knife made his way to Shiori._

 _Before Hirari could react, Shiori was already in Akiteru's arms. "SHIORI!"_

 _The little girl's reaction cannot be painted. She was terrified. She was really terrified._

Hirari felt angry at herself. "I-I couldn't even remember how the suspects looked like… I was completely useless… I tried drawing their faces, but I didn't know how to at that time. If… if only my eyes were video cameras, I could have captured that into my mind… but no… I failed…" She was catching her breath. "It was all because Akiteru failed _you_ , that's why he went out that night. Volleyball is the only root. There is nothing else to blame! It's unfair! If only they let Akiteru play, even just for once, he wouldn't feel that way! Shiori-san would still be alive!" She clutched her head in pain, remembering the trauma of a child seeing someone get killed.

Tsukishima's mouth was left hanging agape. He closed his lips shut and walked toward Hirari, stopping when he was face to face with her. He passed by her, putting his hands in his pockets as if nothing happened. As soon as their backs were turned, so they could not see each other's faces, Tsukishima finally said something.

" _If you're really a fairy, you'd fly."_

"… Tell your friend that she shouldn't blame herself for such a pathetic reason. You, too." He then walked away.

"And by the way… Yamaguchi took the mascot's head from Kageyama yesterday. He returned it to the Media Club after practice, just in case you really _are_ the one inside the costume and still need it."

 _Mashumaro woke up staring at a white ceiling. She sat upright and looked around, realizing she was in a hospital. She gazed out the window._

 _Her right wrist was bandaged and still broken and she didn't realize that her left hand was already clutching the bedsheets tightly._

* * *

Kageyama's late arrival to practice surprised everyone. "Hey, where have you been again?" Hinata asked. The raven-haired setter didn't say a word. He started to walk, accidentally bumping his leg into something. He looked down and saw a giant mascot. "... SERIOUSLY?" He reacted. The mascot stood up inelegantly from the floor and faced Kageyama. She tried speaking but only muffled and jumbled up words can be heard. "… That's a weird reason to be here." Kageyama scowled, sighing in annoyance. Hinata scrunched up his face. "… How did you understand what she was saying?"

Kageyama already took too much in his brain in one day, and the story he heard earlier was enough to make him understand a lot. Ignoring the mascot, he walked towards Hinata, looking down at the short boy. "H-Hey! You're being scary today!" Hinata backed away and put his hands in a karate chop form.

"…Hinata, if one day, you got hurt because of volleyball, and a series of unfortunate events followed just from that pain, what would you do?"

The mascot walked toward them. Moving was a lot easier this time, since she got used to it. Hinata and Nishinoya, who also ran to greet Kageyama, looked at each other before answering with loud and confident voices. "Isn't that obvious? IT'S MYSELF I'D BLAME! Not the sport! Volleyball can't even _hurt_ people, unless you got hit by a ball to the face!" Nishinoya remarked. "Yes, yes! Volleyball is something that _we_ do! If we get hurt or lose, it simply means we're not strong enough!" Hinata followed.

Kageyama was about to ask another question but he was disturbed by the weird mascot who always made its place beside him. A vein popped in his forehead, weirded out by its presence once again. He knew that he will never get used to this. "About the video camera of that Ishikawa person… I left it in the faculty room in the hands of the teacher. As for _you_ , aren't you going to return that costume wherever you got it and just come in here… _normally_?" He grabbed the shoulders of the large bird roughly. Hirari squealed at the closeness of the boy in front of her and hit him so hard, he fell to the floor.

"Oi! What was that for!?" Kageyama ran towards her but she held out her wings in front of her. They ended up in a hand-to-wing combat position. Hirari tried speaking again but her voice was so quiet and muffled that Hinata and Nishinoya only heard gibberish. Kageyama, on the other hand…

"What did you say!? I wasn't 'butting in Ishikawa's life'! I just asked the teachers if they knew her or not so I could return the camera!" He talked back. It all stopped when Daichi decided to interfere and pushed the two apart with his bare hands, a dangerous smile scaring both of them.

Kageyama turned his back on her and prepared for a warm-up. "Anyway… hating volleyball is her choice, if ever she does." He was finally calm and Hirari followed him around as usual. "In any case, why do you keep following me?"

On the sidelines, Sugawara was wiping off his tears of joy. "Kageyama is actually talking to someone else besides us… I'm so touched."


	7. Chapter 7 Evidence

Tsukishima couldn't hear his surroundings at all for the simple reason he had his headphones on. It will just be a little while until the next class starts and everyone was already cramming for the upcoming quiz. He flipped over the pages of his notebook, scanning through his notes for the History quiz. However, he had to take his headphones off when Yamaguchi came running towards his desk with his own notebook on-hand. "Tsuki! Have you memorized all the Asian countries? Let's review for a while before the teacher arrives." The freckled boy suggested. Tsukishima eyed Yamaguchi for a while before continuing on with his studying. The latter just smiled at him happily.

The blonde glanced at the seat behind the one beside him. Mashumaro was sound asleep yet again, ignoring the fact that everyone around her is reciting what they know and yet, she values rest more. He winced, his face wrinkling in annoyance. He couldn't seem to understand _why_ it seemed as if she was always escaping. Escaping the facts that she can't fly, can't write the future, and she _can't_ pass the quiz if she was being lazy again.

"Why do you care so much about her?"

Yamaguchi's voice made Tsukishima's heart skip a beat in surprise. _"Crap. He noticed."_ The blonde thought when he looked at Yamaguchi and saw the freckled boy following his gaze to the sleeping girl. Tsukishima looked back at his notebook. "I don't. Shut up, Yamaguchi." He answered. She was the most delusional and annoying person Tsukishima has ever met and she isn't even bothered by it. Suddenly, a bag dropped on the desk beside him, making him look up once again. Yamaguchi, too, looked behind him to see Hirari putting her slightly wet hair up in a ponytail. She looked at both of the boys and waved. "Good morning!"

She smiled as if nothing happened the other day. This action pissed off Tsukishima.

The girl then used her finger to poke the sleeping Mashumaro. "Hey…" She tried shaking her shoulder to wake her up. "Maro…" She called, releasing Mashumaro's shoulders from her grip. Mashumaro finally looked up from her arms and yawned. "Maro, what's the capital of Azerbaijan?" Hirari asked impulsively.

"Baku."

The other students stared in shock at the duo. "S-She answered it despite being just woken up from her sleep?" One of the boys commented. Even Tsukishima and Yamaguchi had blank, priceless reactions. "Then, what's the capital of Syria?" A random girl shouted the question to Mashumaro. "Damascus." The latter answered with a yawn. Suddenly, some students decided to test it out for themselves, too.

"Afghanistan?"

"Kabul."

"Cyprus?"

"Nicosia."

"Qatar?"

"Doha."

The questioning went on for a while until half of the Asian countries were mentioned. The fact that Mashumaro's eyes still looked tired made the students cringe when she answered all of their questions. "…No wonder she was transferred here." One student looked at Minori, slightly embarrassing her. Minori gritted her teeth and stomped away from them with a 'hmp'. Mashumaro looked around, stopping when she made eye contact with Tsukishima. The two stared at each other for a while, before Tsukishima broke the stare and continued on with his reading. Every single time the two girls are here, they start making a lot of noise and it's incredibly distracting for Tsukishima.

"You know, ever since you hardly attend club, I've been doing _all_ your work! I bet you don't even know the collab our president wants us to do? You're supposed to write about the volleyball club, you know!" Hirari was now scolding her friend who was just laughing at her face. "Um… you girls are covering the volleyball club?" Yamaguchi couldn't help but ask when he heard their conversation. "Yeah! I've been in that club, trying to look for my video camera and trying to gather information for _days_ already inside a crow! That guy Kageyama even—oh."

Tsukishima once again looked at them, irritated at how they could get his attention rather easily. "So you really are that girl in the crow mascot _stalking_ us every practice?" He asked with a slightly offending tone. Hirari suddenly covered her mouth. She is busted. "I'm sorry, but… have you even met Kageyama _outside_ of the mascot? I don't think he's still aware that it's a _person_ he's talking to when you're there." Yamaguchi pointed out, making Hirari blush deeper. Mashumaro didn't know what has been happening to club in the past few days so she had no idea what they were talking about. "I-I, well, I didn't want to show my face in _there_ alone! If Maro was with me, I'll be a lot braver! So, anyway… I finally got my video camera from a teacher called… Hayashi-sensei, I think?" Hirari continued her story, her eyes darting to Mashumaro at the end of her statement. The latter just chuckled teasingly.

"Okay, okay. I'll be attending club later." Mashumaro reassured. She didn't want to tell Hirari that she's been skipping club because she had been visiting a certain bridge everyday, thinking of ways to _fly_. "I won't be satisfied with just that! Don't be unfair!" Hirari complained. "T-Then, what do you want me to do?" The other girl held out her hands in defense. A mischievous smirk appeared on Hirari's face, making Mashumaro's sweat drop. "I want you to wear a costume, too!"

Meanwhile, Tsukishima already had both hands messing up his curly blonde hair in frustration. Yamaguchi was trying to calm him down. "T-Tsuki!" He exclaimed. Tsukishima stopped the action, and finally snapped at them. "… Either you want to fail the test and are just involving us with your noise or you want to pass and make everyone else fail by making noise, it doesn't matter to me. However… I'm going to have to make a bet to stop this nonsense once and for all…" He looked at Mashumaro and the girl just smiled beamingly at him.

"… Super-writer girl will have to write about me failing the quiz now. If I did, I'll believe her story of being a fortuneteller and I'll let you make all the noise you want to make everyday." His face looked smug with his threatening smirk, obviously mocking the girl, determined to prove her wrong. "But if I pass the test, then that means she hasn't proven her story and you two should do everyone a favor and actually _act_ like you belong in this class."

This was ending now or never, Tsukishima thought.

Hirari slammed her hand on his table angrily. "You're so mean! But that's—"

"A nice idea!" Mashumaro agreed, smiling and without question, earning a flabbergasted reaction from Hirari.

* * *

"I'll be requiring you all to pass a Media Journal every last day of the week."

Discouraged groans could be heard among the Media Club members when the president announced a new rule. "Don't give me those long faces. Passing a Media Journal that documents all your activities regarding your assignments every _last day_ of the week is much more easier than giving me reports every day." The president, Saruhiko Anna, announced. She took off her glasses and briefly looked at Mashumaro, whose eyes widened in anxiety. "Especially to those people who do not attend club meetings every day." She ended.

One of the club members raised his hand. "Yes, Hayazaki?" She gestured for him to continue. "Um… so the media journal will serve as evidence if we're active club members and are doing our job properly?" The boy asked. Saruhiko smiled deviously, making all of the members sit up straight. She put on her glasses after wiping the lenses clean before continuing. "Precisely. So the only difference between our old system and new system is that you are all obligated to gather information every day and at least be able to pass a _proper_ journal entry every week so I could record your progress. Then if the information we have is finally enough to create a draft, that's when you all will start working on the month's issue. Understood?"

"Yes, ma'am!"

Mashumaro munched on a piece of basil bread she prepared at home for her lunch but didn't get to eat earlier. She awaited Hirari's explanation before she commented. Hirari dug out her video camera from her bag and placed it on the table. "Okay… so… we're assigned to the volleyball team. I'll be recording their plays with my video camera and then you'll—" Hirari paused, remembering that if she took out her video camera and stuck it to the mascot's wing, Kageyama will immediately find out her secret identity. She wasn't prepared for that and she knew she'll only get really flustered if he does find out.

He knows her past now and she's not ready for a 'partial' stranger to know it. Except Tsukishima, since it's a given that he is Akiteru's brother.

"On second thought… I think I'm not going to use my camera for now." Hirari said. Mashumaro's eyebrows were lifted, disappearing into her bangs out of amusement. "That's rare. You usually use your camera for _everything_." She commented in a barely audible voice, her mouth full of bread. "I-I can't use my video camera while I'm inside a mascot costume, you know!" The other girl tried reasoning, but Mashumaro just tilted her head at her. "You can just go there without wearing a costume." The writer suggested, leaving a blush on Hirari's face. The nervous girl covered her entire face with her hands, imagining what could happen if she went there as a girl and not a crow.

She wasn't close to Kageyama personally and she knew it'll only turn awkward if she went there knowing that Kageyama already has an idea about what happened to her. Plus, she didn't want to see a volleyball game as Ishikawa Hirari.

She didn't want to see how many bench players were there, waiting for their turn, only to graduate with nothing. She didn't want to witness that as Ishikawa Hirari. Being a mascot is so much easier. Being a mascot is her form of escape besides recording the events with a video camera despite of seeing it personally. She always didn't want to see things in her own eyes and she'll just end up forgetting, anyway.

Just like when she was unable to describe what the murderers looked like.

"If you're worried about the volleyball and the bench players, then stop it. I'll be there with you this time. The reason why Saruhiko assigned this to me was because she knew that I can make everyone shine no matter what their position is. Don't underestimate me." Mashumaro reassured. Although she looked calm and happy as ever, her words were enough to cheer Hirari up. "But… that's not going to change my mind about making you wear a costume. You made me go there alone for days wearing a hard-to-move-in costume, you know!" Hirari pointed at her accusingly. Mashumaro stood up and ran towards the door to escape, but Hirari tackled her to the ground. "I have especially bought a nice one for you! At least appreciate me wasting my money just to embarrass you with me!" They wrestled against each other, and they ended up getting scolded by the president.

When they finally calmed their spirits down, Hirari looked into her video camera, checking if Kageyama did any kind of damage on it. To her surprise, his sweaty fingerprints stained the lenses. "By the way, Maro," She said, still wiping off Kageyama's fingerprints off her camera.

"Did Tsukishima pass that quiz?"

* * *

"One more!"

The spikers called out to Kageyama and Sugawara, awaiting their tosses. Sugawara tossed to Azumane, and the ace spiked it as strong as he can to the other side, accidentally hitting Hinata on the face and getting sent back to the former side due to the impact. "Ah! I'm sorry!" Azumane started to freak out while Kageyama kept showering Hinata with angry insults for the latter's failure to receive the ball with his hands. "C-Cover!" Tanaka called out, immediately passing the ball back to the Sugawara who tossed it to Daichi. The captain smashed the ball to the other side of the court, but again, the pesky libero saved it. "Again!" Hinata shouted from the other side of the net. Kageyama tossed the ball to none other than the small crow and it landed a point.

"YES!"

The oddball duo celebrated. "Alright, let's do some normal qui—" Kageyama stopped talking and his eyes averted from Hinata. "…Huh? What? Do some what?" Hinata, confused, started jumping around Kageyama until he saw for himself what distracted the setter.

A crow… and a dinosaur.

"W-We came to, um, uh… we're from the Media Club!" Mashumaro was more than anxious when she saw what Hirari was talking about. _Large men. Beautiful managers. A delinquent-looking coach._ She inhaled a large amount of air when everyone, every single one of them, went near her. "She's so cute!" Nishinoya, Tanaka, and Hinata all reacted upon seeing a tiny girl wearing an over-sized dinosaur hoodie. The hoodie was so over-sized that it only left an inch of her skirt that can be seen and her whole arms and hands were covered by the sleeves. The sleeves even had plush claws stuck on the ends and felt cloth teeth lining the hood. "What's with all the girls in costumes visiting us regularly?" Tsukishima scoffed, but Yamaguchi just chuckled. "But, Tsuki, you like dinosaurs, right? That small blush on your face says—" "Shut up, Yamaguchi."

The two girls in costumes froze in their places, not breathing. "Why is it that I have to show my face to them and you don't?" Mashumaro whispered to Hirari. The latter did not say another word. "Ah, yes! I remember now! The Media Club president asked for my permission earlier if her assigned club members could visit our practices so they could cover us in the next month's issue." Takeda explained. A loud "oooohhhh" was heard from the boys. "H-Hey! Stop scaring them! Let's continue practice!" Daichi tried scolding them but no one was listening. "Hey, dinosaur girl! Give us a roar! Rawr!" Hinata demonstrated it by forming his hands into a claw-like form and roared. "Oi, are you a dinosaur or a vacuum cleaner?" Kageyama said before returning to court. _"Why is everyone so bothered by a normal girl in hoodie but aren't batting an eye at the huge crow mascot?"_ He complained inside his mind secretly, unable to accept why he's the only one who always seems so bothered by the crow. "Oh! We have a dinosaur vacuum cleaner at home, come to think of it!" Mashumaro's nervousness was gone when she heard Kageyama's words. Hirari flapped her wings to get her attention, trying to talk Mashumaro into letting them continue practice instead of continuing the conversation so they could just get to work. "Hey! Hey!" She tried calling Mashumaro again.

"Come on! Rawr!" This time, both Hinata and Nishinoya were convincing her. When Tanaka did the action, she got scared so the Sugawara had to pull Tanaka away from the scene. Azumane tried talking to them too, but both of the costumed girls shrieked when he was only a meter away. "R-Rawr." Mashumaro repeated the action in a slightly more awkward manner. Hirari started laughing.

From far away, Tsukishima blushed, fixed his glasses coolly to cover his recoil, and walked away, leaving a confused Yamaguchi on the side of the court.

"THAT'S SO CUTE!"

"GO BACK TO PRACTICE!"

Everything returned to normal instantly when Daichi finally lost it.

The whistle was blown by Ukai once again to signal both Shimizu and Yachi. The two girls nodded and threw the ball just slightly above the setters' heads. "Spiking practice, start!" Ukai commanded. At the same time, both setters tossed to the spikers who were first in line – Tanaka and Daichi. At the other side of the court, Nishinoya and Ennoshita were practicing to receive the spikes. This continued on for a while, until it was Hinata's turn to spike.

"That little guy can spike?" Mashumaro asked ignorantly. Hirari wobbled around. "I don't know. I don't watch them spike. I leave when spiking practice starts." She answered. Hinata ran to the net at the same time the ball was thrown towards Kageyama. "Is it because you remember Akiteru-san when you see someone spike?" Mashumaro asked with a laugh. Kageyama exhaled as the ball looked as if it was in slow motion as it came towards his hands.

"… _Hinata, if one day, you got hurt because of volleyball, and a series of unfortunate events followed just from that pain, what would you do?"_

" _Volleyball is something that we do! If we get hurt or lose, it simply means we're not strong enough!"_

The ball was tossed up in the air quickly and Hinata jumped.

Both Hirari's and Mashumaro's eyes widened.

 _Bam._ The ball was slammed on the gym floor before they knew it.

"Nice kill!" Practice continued on normally, but the two girls were still processing the event in their minds. It was fast. It was too fast for them to understand. "No." Hirari answered. "That was completely different from the spike we both know." She followed, not realizing a smile on her face. No one would have noticed it either way, since she chose to cover her face beneath the mascot's head yet again. "…That setter's Kageyama, right? The boy you always talk to?" Mashumaro asked again.

Hirari took a while before she could respond. She watched as Hinata yell for one more. The toss was set up high for the small crow and he hit flawlessly. "Yeah… but he doesn't know me."

Mashumaro ended up laughing again like she always does. They were so absorbed in Hinata's play and their conversation that they didn't notice how Kageyama went to the bench for a while to grab a towel. When his hand reached for one, he accidentally toppled over a bag beside Yachi. "Ah! That's Ms. Crow Mascot's bag!" Yachi explained, panicking a bit. "Ah, sorry. I'll get it." Kageyama slung the towel over his neck and bent to pick the bag up. As he rashly grabbed it from the floor, something fell out.

"You think you're finally strong enough to face volleyball now?" Mashumaro asked again, her eyes gazing at the other players. That's when she noticed that Kageyama wasn't on the court anymore. Hirari let out a chuckle. "Probably."

Meanwhile, Kageyama was staring at the video camera on the floor, his eyes widening as he looked at the crow mascot from across the court.


	8. Chapter 8 The Girl Who Fell

Kageyama couldn't move.

The mascot was actually _human_. Yes, he knows he has been unable to accept that such a thing was human since he always saw it as some kind of annoying creature, but he just _had_ to find out that the _human_ inside was Ishikawa Hirari. And he had been talking to Ishikawa Hirari about _Ishikawa Hirari_.

Kageyama was slightly panicking inside, not noticing that Hinata was already calling him back to the court. Should he pick up the camera? What if she sees him pick up the camera? What if she turns his head to him now? Should he ignore it? Should he just tell Yachi to pick it up? But that would mean ordering her around and he didn't want to be an oppressive dictator again. So should he pick it up himself, then?

She'd definitely know that he already knows that she knows that he knows about her past.

"Hey, Kageyama! What are you doing staring at the—mmp!" Kageyama immediately covered Hinata's mouth with his hand, strangling him in the process. "Shh! You dumbass! Be quiet!" He hushed, dragging him back to the court with his hand still on the shorter boy's mouth. Yachi trembled in alarm, staring back and forth from the dropped camera to Kageyama, wondering why he ignored it even though he was the one who made it fall from the bag. "Is something wrong with Kageyama?" Azumane asked Daichi out of concern. Daichi just shrugged his shoulders.

When Kageyama finally brought Hinata to a 'safe' place where no one could hear them, he leaned down to whisper. "Listen; pretend you didn't see the camera, okay?" He ordered. Hinata just shot him a puzzled look. "Ha? You're being weird! First, you're bothered by the mascot. Now, you're bothered by the cam—gah!" Kageyama wrung his hands around Hinata's neck. "I told you to be quiet! You're too loud, you moron!" The taller boy scolded. He looked at the two girls across the court with the corner of his eye and noticed Mashumaro watching them curiously. "… Crap. They're from the Media Club. One wrong move, this is going to the headlines…" He muttered, confusing Hinata even more when he was finally out of the setter's grasp. "Hey! What's going on with you? Are you worried that your grumpy face would be in the school's newspaper? That's your fault for not learning how to smile." The spiker told him, pissing him off. "IT'S NOT THAT!" Kageyama yelled, but he pursed his lips right after. He may not admit it but he didn't want his frown to appear on the headlines and scare those who read the newspapers. He put Hinata in a headlock and whispered something. Hinata released himself from the headlock after hearing what the setter told him. "H-Ha!? We're going to do it immediately?"

Kageyama nodded. "But why?" Hinata asked again. "Just follow my lead!" Kageyama insisted. The boys then went back to the court. "We're sorry. Please continue." Kageyama bowed to Daichi. "Okay! One more!" The captain told everyone. Shimizu threw another ball towards Kageyama. The setter tried to calm himself down, thinking about the plan.

" _Hinata… we're going to do that quick set. I'm going to aim the ball at a position where if you hit it, it'll land near the girls. Run fast."_

He opened his eyes and saw the ball falling towards his hands.

"The ball's position is somehow giving me a bad feeling." Hirari told Mashumaro. The other girl smiled. "Oh my. Looks like the intense feeling from watching Akiteru-san is back, huh?" Mashumaro said as they watched Hinata jump up to spike at the ball. "No… I think the feeling's stronger now." Hirari answered in a quiet voice.

Just seconds after Hinata's jump, Kageyama's eyes turned to the crow mascot. _"If I show you, will you change your mind about volleyball?"_ He thought. Hinata's hand moved forward to the ball. _"If I show you how amazing it is, will you change your mind?"_ Kageyama was still talking to himself in his mind when the spiker's hands hit the ball downward.

" _But first you have to be strong enough to win it over."_

The ball slammed on the wooden gym floor right in front where the girls were standing. Upon seeing the reckless action, Tsukishima's face creased. He knew what the girls felt about volleyball, and although he hardly cared, that was still insensitive of Kageyama. However, the girls just stood there on their spots, completely frozen. The perplexed reaction on Mashumaro's face cannot be hidden, though. "W-What just happened?" She asked. Hirari, on the other hand, didn't feel fear. She felt courage. She felt so brave the moment the ball hit the floor. She didn't have time to blink.

Kageyama was panting. He knew that if they did their quick, the girl wouldn't have the time to close her eyes. He knew that she'd face it forcibly because he knew that their quick set was fast enough to be seen without blinking. "How was that?" He whispered to himself although the words were directed to a girl named Ishikawa Hirari. "Did you feel it?" He said again.

"Maro." Hirari said, raising her wings to hold on to the mascot's head. "He's coming towards you. I know." Mashumaro laughed. Kageyama jogged towards Hirari, stopping when he was face to face with her. He also raised his own hands and grabbed on to the mascot's head, touching her wings accidentally. Hirari felt a shock go down her spine when he did, although she thought Kageyama probably didn't mind it since all that's in his mind was that there was a cloth separating their fingers. "I'm…" Kageyama started talking, still looking at the mascot's head with a serious face. "I'm Kageyama Tobio."

They both raised the mascot's head, revealing an innocent girl's face covered with tears and sweat. She bit her lip, removed her bangs from covering her eyes, dropping the mascot's head on the floor and it landed with a thud. "I'm Ishikawa Hirari!" The girl cried before freeing her arms from the inside of the mascot and jumping out, hugging Kageyama spontaneously, putting the boy in a state of shock. "Thank you!"

"K-Kageyama's being hugged!?" Tanaka and Nishinoya yelled.

Kageyama, still in a state of shock and nosebleed, blushed furiously and fainted. "… Eh? Kageyama?"

 _Awkward._

* * *

"It's a shame we had to end practice earlier than usual. But I guess that's okay. I'm actually a bit surprised that it's Kageyama's first time to be hugged by a girl. He seems popular enough to have fans, though." Yamaguchi told Tsukishima as they walked home. In the end, they had to watch Hirari get flustered and cry over her actions while the others fanned Kageyama with towels to lessen the heat on his face. "I'm sure it's also Ishikawa's first time hugging a boy based on her reaction. Although she did it involuntarily." Tsukishima said, his eyes focused on the dark road. The streetlight was blinking and the road home looked like a scene from a horror movie. Yamaguchi was already slowing down his pace, getting aware of the eerie surroundings, but Tsukishima was still as normal as he usually is. The night was strangely quiet, making Yamaguchi doubt the actual time. "Tsuki… It's still 6 at night, right?" He asked. Tsukishima took out his phone from his pocket and checked the time. "It's 6:30." He answered. Knowing that it is still early calmed Yamaguchi's nerves a bit as they walked in silence.

Tsukishima was still on his phone, checking the text messages. They were all from his mother and it was strange since she knows that he always comes home later than tonight. He opened the messages and it seems his mom was asking him a favor to buy eggs from the supermarket just a few meters away from his house. "I'm going to take a different route. My mom's asking me to buy something." He told Yamaguchi, stopping by a fork on the road. The freckled boy looked at him, a bit baffled, and nodded. He was about to say something until they heard a bounce on the road Tsukishima was about to take.

A stray ball bounced in front of them, rolling and bumping against Tsukishima's foot. The ball was worn-out and had scratches here and there. The leather was also tearing.

The silence became heavier.

The wind became stronger.

Both boys turned towards the direction when they heard a twig snap. They saw a dark silhouette. It had a horn on its head and long floppy arms. It was wobbling on towards them until the loud sound of thunder and a flash of lightning lit up the figure at a brief moment.

"IIIIIIIIIIEEEEEEEEEE!" Yamaguchi shrieked, forgetting about Tsukishima and running as fast as he can to his road to home. Meanwhile, Tsukishima's eye twitched at the sight of a tiny dinosaur running towards him. "T-Tsukishima! You're here!" Mashumaro beamed at him. Tsukishima picked up the ball on his foot and balanced it on her head. "Are you trying to play volleyball with those incredibly long sleeves covering your whole hands? I thought you were a squid." He insulted with a smirk, making Mashumaro grab the ball from her head, but Tsukishima raised it up before she could. "Hey! Give it back!" The short girl was jumping up and down. The way her dinosaur head hood flopped against her bangs was distracting Tsukishima so he decided to lower his hand. She snatched the ball from him and cradled it in her sleeves. "Bye." She snobbishly turned her back on him and started walking without looking back.

It didn't take long until she spotted Tsukishima already walking beside her and he ended up passing by her. Her mouth hung agape, not noticing how her legs were already half-running just to keep up with his long strides. "Why are you following me?" She asked him. The question made Tsukishima stop abruptly, causing the girl to accidentally hit her face on his firm back. "Ack!" Her hands rubbed her face in pain. The tall blonde looked behind him and down at her. "First of all, don't walk so close to me. It's not fun having people mistake me babysitting a kid in a dinosaur outfit. Second, I am on my way to the supermarket and that has nothing to do with you." He bent down to lean closer to her, intimidating the poor girl. Mashumaro backed away, feeling inferior. Tsukishima stood up straight again and his hand picked up something from his bag. "And third. I passed the quiz. Your fortune-telling failed and you still haven't proven your claims. Now stop bothering me. You're getting on my nerves. See you." His smirk was rubbed off of his face and he frowned at her in annoyance. He then shoved his test paper back in his bag and continued his way. He readied his headphones, wondering if the girl would still be stubborn enough to try and talk to him even after they made a deal. She seemed to be the type to do so.

But there was nothing but utter silence and darkness. It wasn't uncomfortable, thankfully. He thought that maybe she knew how to take a hint no matter how weird she was as a human being. A few minutes of walking passed by slowly, but not a single word came out of their mouths. They reached the bridge and had already started walking across it, the sound of the river below interrupting their soft silence.

Tsukishima sighed, his mind wandering off. There was something missing but he couldn't exactly pinpoint what it is. When his feet reached the end of the bridge, he stopped. No one bumped into his back. He may not admit it but he was quite disturbed of the fact that she really did keep her distance from him. He then realized what was missing the whole time he was crossing the bridge – her footsteps can no longer be heard behind him.

Without thinking, he turned around. Meters away from him, at the side of the bridge, standing on the ledge was a lost girl trying to fly. She probably had already written a future where she flew or at least, sent the ball flying with her own hands. She clutched the worn-out ball with her frail hands, looking down at the river below. The wind blew against her face, blowing the bangs off of her eyes.

Tsukishima winced at the split second he saw her hollow eyes when her bangs moved. It felt like time was in slow-motion for him as he dropped his bag to the ground.

Mashumaro raised the ball higher than her head, and slowly let go. The rain started pouring down, the thunder echoing through the mountain. The girl's feet accidentally slipped off the edge, causing her to lose balance and control over the ball. She inwardly let out a tiny wheeze, her hands trying to grab the ball back but the wetness that came from the rain made her lose footing. She knew the scene.

It was the same scene from back then.

Closing her eyes, she waited for the sound of breaking bones. All she felt was something roughly brushing against her shoulder and the sound of something smacking against leather. She opened one eye first, her vision getting blurry because of the rain. What she saw was large hands grasping the ball she had let go in front of her. Opening her other eye, she noticed her and the person falling to the river. She held her breath and closed her eyes shut again, feeling an arm circle around her waist. "Ngh!" She heard someone grunt.

Tsukishima looked up, unable to see due to his wet eyeglasses. It was a good thing that his hand was large enough to hold the ball, throwing it as hard as he can upward towards the bridge. It was only a matter of seconds before they fall down into the river, so he grabbed on to the slope, his hand sliding off quickly because of the wet soil. He pressed Mashumaro's back against his chest with the hand he used to grab her waist. He used his feet to help his already scraped hand stop their fall by stomping on the soil. The slope was still too slippery, but he managed to stop the momentum of the fall before he let go and both of them ended up on the grass of the riverside, Tsukishima dropping a shocked Mashumaro beside him. He sat on the grass, his right arm resting on his knee. He took off his glasses. The girl beside him watched Tsukishima fold the glasses before putting them into his pocket. "That wasn't your responsibility, you know." She told him, unable to understand why he went as far as that.

Tsukishima was panting heavily and didn't bother to answer right away. "If I let you kill yourself in front of me… there would be no other witnesses or suspects other than myself. I don't wish to get involved in your schemes." He told her, standing up as if they didn't just almost lose their lives. Mashumaro didn't answer, but for some reason, she felt disappointed. It was a strange feeling for her to get disappointed over Tsukishima's acceptable reason. "You could have just saved yourself without my help if you just flew." He told her.

Mashumaro stood up, her hands making their way to her cheeks. "I-It's not my fault! I slipped from the edge, that's why I wasn't able to fly well." She mumbled, making up an excuse for her obvious let-down.

"Oh, that's right. I guess you can't fly. But… you weren't trying to fly at all. It's the ball you aimed to take flight." Tsukishima said in a mocking tone as he walked away from her. He had a lot of explaining to do to his mom for taking so long to buy eggs. "And you never actually believed that my brother would play in an official match. You just pitied him. That's why you started claiming that you can 'write the future' to make up for your sorry excuse for a believer." He was confronting her in the cruelest way possible, but he still kept going on, anyway. "You claimed you can fly because you didn't want to believe seeing the ball falling into the river because you failed to receive it when you were younger. And you also didn't want to believe that you almost died trying to 'fly' after it. Since the only thing you believed you were good at was writing, you held on to that as a means of escape."

Tsukishima looked back at her. "Am I right?" He asked. Mashumaro did not say anything. She just covered her head with the already wet hoodie and walked aimlessly, looking down at her feet. Tsukishima knew that he couldn't really blame her. Just like her brother, the girl in front of him was only a victim of false hope. He couldn't stand it. He couldn't stand the fact that the girl _only_ believed in his brother for pessimistic reasons. They both believed in Akiteru, but for different reasons. The girl only had pity in her heart when she kept seeing him over and over in the bleachers, and to remove that pity, she concealed it with strange other beliefs just to reassure herself that it's not pity and lowliness of not being able to do anything for Akiteru that she's feeling.

Believing in something should be driven by hope and happiness. Believing in something or someone should be the reason for pushing oneself forward. But Kaji Mashumaro failed to dispose of her pity towards the bench players and failure to send the ball flying, nailing the emotions to her senseless, hopeful writings only to serve as an assurance of being alive after almost dying because of her baseless theories. She thought she had escaped with her pen and paper, but she had no idea that those emotions were already carved into her personality. No one even tried to help her. No one saw through her. Hirari was equally as mentally-scarred, but she is trying to return to life. But Mashumaro was different.

Tsukishima watched her walk past him quietly. He knew that if he just lets this pass again, no one would help her. He didn't want to. Caring is something he wasn't good at. But he had already gotten too involved. He listened to her endless rambling about her writings, he heard her say his brother's name a lot of times, he witnessed her letting go of the ball from the bridge to see if it would fly as a result of her past, refusing to believe that she almost died just because of chasing a falling ball, he watched her slip and fall from the bridge, and he heard her call herself 'pathetic' with his own ears.

So if not him, then who?

He grabbed her shoulders, turned her around, and _picked_ her up so they could look at each other eye-to-eye. Mashumaro's eyes were wide in surprise, slightly grunting when he picked her up, failing to comprehend what suddenly came into the tall boy's mind. "Tomorrow is a Saturday, a half-day of classes." He reminded her. "We'll drop the ball again. We're not going to serve, toss, spike, or even receive so you don't have to practice playing volleyball."

Mashumaro's eyes widened even more. "If you fail to make the ball fly _with your powers_ , then that proves that you are a normal human being." Tsukishima smirked, challenging the girl.

"However… you are not allowed to chase the ball or close your eyes."


	9. Chapter 9 Magnus Effect

"Class dismissed!"

The students all went towards their group of friends, talking about club activities or checking out a newly-opened café by the corner of the street. Mashumaro tapped a finger on Hirari's shoulder. "So… how was Kageyama last night?" She didn't notice that her voice was so loud when she asked, Tsukishima accidentally spat out the water he was drinking. The students near them gawked at Hirari in shock. "W-W-What did you do to the guy last night?" One student asked. "LAST NIGHT!?" Yamaguchi couldn't even believe what he had just heard. Tsukishima had a hand to his mouth, still coughing out water. "Y-You and Kageyama Tobio from Class 3-!?" Another student reacted.

Hirari and Mashumaro just looked at all of them innocently, having no idea what they were trying to say. "Ha? What's wrong with asking about Kageyama?" Mashumaro asked them. The other students blinked once, before they all laughed nervously. "Ha ha… we're just thinking too much… Ishikawa's probably as pure as we think she is." One of the females said. "Yes, yes." A male student agreed. After that awkward - weird for the two girls – scene, Hirari stood up and fixed her things. "I had to go home before he woke up so we haven't really talked."

Again, Tsukishima spat out the water. Yamaguchi's face paled. The other students gawked at them for the second time. "… H-He was asleep!? WHERE?" A female student asked. "Oh my gosh, this is just… oh my gosh… I can't… I just can't." Someone already walked out, looking disgusted. "Where have you been last night, Ishikawa!? Why was he asleep!? WHY WERE YOU WATCHING HIM SLEEP?" Another one panicked.

The two girls were already staring at them weirdly, putting on their most judgmental faces. "… What are you guys even thinking?" Hirari decided to get straight to the point. "I was with the volleyball team last night in the nurse's office since Kageyama fainted. What's so freaky about that?" She explained, raising an eyebrow at all of them. Just when things are already weird for the girls, they got even more weirded out when all of the students around them sighed in relief as if they had just escaped a revelation and left the classroom just like that. Returning to their conversation, Mashumaro placed her notebook inside her bag. "So… are you ready to face the guy after you _unconsciously_ hugged him because you were touched by his introduction?" She teased Hirari, emphasizing on a certain word to embarrass the other girl further.

They heard a chair move from their side and noticed Tsukishima walk towards Mashumaro's seat. He placed a worn-out volleyball on her desk. "Threw it back over the bridge last night." He told her. Hirari's eyes widened. "What were you guys doing on that bridge?" She asked Mashumaro, feeling a bit hurt since she didn't know anything. "Oh, that. Don't worry about that!" Mashumaro explained defensively. "We have things to settle today. Yamaguchi, go on to practice without me. I'll arrive a bit late today. He told the freckled boy. Yamaguchi hesitated for a moment, but he nodded when he realized that it must be something serious.

Hirari refused to go away, though. "Can't I come?" She asked Tsukishima. The blonde glared at her in response. "Don't _you_ have some reconciling to do with the King of The Court?" He reminded her. "Go on, Hirari. He's not going to hurt me." Mashumaro assured her friend with a smile. The other girl suspiciously eyed Tsukishima before finally leaving the room.

Tsukishima's eyes darted back to Mashumaro. He lifted the ball from the desk and bounced it on his hands, his other hand in his pocket, and went out of the room. Mashumaro bit her lip nervously. She stood up from her seat and ran after him. They walked side-by-side, making some of the girls who were fans of Tsukishima Kei glare at the weirdo beside the cool guy. "So where are we going?" She asked, excitement raining from her voice. "Tch." Tsukishima's tongue clicked, not bothering to answer her impatient question. They walked up the flights of stairs until Tsukishima opened a steel door leading to the school's rooftop. Mashumaro stopped walking, feeling the breeze against her cheeks. She breathed in the air before catching up to Tsukishima, who was already positioned at the end of the rooftop.

The blonde threw the ball to her, and Mashumaro barely caught it. "Make it fly. It'll prove your powers, right? Oh, and I bet you even wrote a story about a flying ball before you came here." His smirk was back on his face, mocking her. "And if you fail to make it fly with pixie dust, you'll have to admit that you're a normal girl with no superpowers or fairy blood. If you succeed, however, feel free to write about my future death." He taunted her. Mashumaro looked down at the ball in her hands before facing him with a determined expression. She went towards him and leaned over the ledge. They were pretty far from the ground, and a fall could mean instant death. She raised the ball over the ledge and released it from her grip.

Both of them watched as the ball continuously made its way down, the wind slightly affecting its path. "Why…" Mashumaro mumbled, her fingers scratching on the ledge as she leaned over. She remembered that she wasn't supposed to close her eyes or she would have proven that everything she believed in was false. She watched the ball bounce on the ground below, rolling until it reached the grassy area. "T-That wasn't supposed to happen! There has to be some kind of miscalculation! I made a ball fly before, so there's probably something in the story I wrote that made it drop the ground with no movement from its path at all! No, wait. It flew didn't it? It flew! But that was probably the wind, isn't it? No, it flew!" Mashumaro panicked in front of Tsukishima for the first time, amusing him. She pulled on her hair out of frustration and disbelief.

"When you made a ball 'fly' before, were your eyes open?" Tsukishima asked. Mashumaro looked at him and for the first time, Tsukishima successfully pissed her off. The scowl on her face was enough to depict her upset mood. "No." She remembered chasing a ball to the bridge and jumping off, but her eyes immediately closed before she even hit the water. She remembered it quite well. She remembered opening her eyes, only to find herself inside a hospital room after that. She couldn't even recall why she was there in the first place.

The only thing she believed in was that she flew, but she didn't know what happened before she hit the waters. The lost memory was due to her closing her eyes before the impact. She was scared. She was scared of not knowing what exactly brought her to the hospital room. Because she was so scared, she had nothing else to believe in but the false hope that she flew. It wasn't just because she wrote it.

She was scared of knowing what exactly happened to her. She didn't just close her eyes before she hit the river, she closed her eyes before she hit reality.

She was so absorbed in her thoughts that she didn't notice Tsukishima picking up something from his bag on the ground. It was another ball. He rested his arms on her shoulders so she could see what was on his hands as he stretched. Her back was against his chest and she could feel his steady breath. He dropped the ball just like what she did. They both watched the ball fall, until it suddenly started making its way forward and away from them. Mashumaro gasped as the ball did not fall immediately on the ground and was able to travel meters away from its intended path to the ground below. It was _rolling_ in mid-air. It went farther and farther; forward and forward until it finally landed safely on the patches of grass, still rolling, away from the previous ball that she dropped. Her lips quivered, as she is unable to speak. "Now… can you explain why a normal human being like me was able to make a ball fly while a fairy like you couldn't?" Tsukishima told her before stepping backward so she can turn around. She turned her head to look at his smug face, before turning her whole body to face him. She pointed furiously at the blonde who chuckled mockingly. "H-How did you make the ball fly!?"

Tsukishima shrugged his shoulders arrogantly. "It's something only a normal human being can do, I guess." He teased. Mashumaro pouted angrily, although this only made Tsukishima laugh even more. "What was the purpose of this? Was it to humiliate me? Just like what the others do all the time?" She tried to sound brave and happy as usual, but this was the first time she ever admitted the truth to someone since middle school. The truth of being an outcast. Tsukishima picked up his bag from the ground. "So how was it? Seeing a ball fly for the first time, I mean?" He asked her. Her breath stopped as she recalled a similar statement from before.

" _So how was it? Seeing someone spike for the first time, I mean?"_

"Akiteru-san…" She whispered to herself, not noticing the tears stinging her eyes. "It was… _breath-taking._ " She answered as she looked up at Tsukishima's face. She remembered the very first time she saw how a ball was spiked to the other side. She didn't realize that she had been closing her eyes from reality ever since she fell from the bridge. Her eyes were opened once again, just like that time when she saw someone play volleyball for the very first time. "I… I…" She wiped her tears away, but she couldn't seem to stop sobbing.

"'Breath-taking'? That's a deep word, even though seeing a ball fly is not really a big deal. So," Tsukishima raised an eyebrow and paused. "What's your name?" He asked, knowing that the girl never told him her full name and never introduced herself in front of class in the first place.

"' _Breathtaking' seems like a deep word for someone your age! I bet you'd make a good writer if you always speak like that. So what's your name?"_

Both of Mashumaro's hands covered her face. It took a while before she could control her sobbing. Removing her hands from covering her expression, she inhaled deeply. "I-I'm… I'm Kaji Mashumaro! Nice to meet you!" She bowed, her voice desperate and lonely, finally saying her name out loud with full confidence. When she looked up again, Tsukishima nodded. He was relieved that the thing that has been bothering him for a while has been resolved now and he hoped that she'd finally return to a normal high school girl's life.

"The Magnus effect." He told her. The girl got confused, even though she was still in the midst of tears. "Physics. It's what made the ball travel far from its original path before finally landing. It's called the Magnus effect. It can be done by giving the ball a backspin before dropping it." He explained to her. The girl looked at him with sparkling eyes, amazed at how much he knows his stuff. "We sometimes incorporate that in our serves while playing volleyball." He finished his explanation before gesturing for them to leave the rooftop now before the teachers catch them. Mashumaro realized that there was more to volleyball than she had ever known.

And she met Tsukishima Kei, the middle blocker who uses physics, information, and analysis to play.

He waited for her to get inside first before he did. Looking up the sky, he realized that the air up the rooftop was colder than what he had imagined. As he went inside, he saw Mashumaro still wiping off the coming tears from her eyes. It was a lot to take in for a sensitive girl. Especially if the girl was someone who used to always close her eyes from reality. Tsukishima thought back at the moment he dropped the ball, pondering about buying a new one instead of making an effort to run to where it landed. He scowled at the girl as he took her hand, slightly annoyed at the fact that he had to babysit her once again. Then he pulled her as they slowly descended the stairs.

Today was the day she lost her delusional door and false hope to escape reality.

Tsukishima didn't know if he should feel remorseful for his actions. Even if she had lived that way until she grew up, he knew it wouldn't affect him either way. What happened in her past had nothing to do with him, even if his brother was slightly involved. He knew that she'll eventually learn that her claims are all false when she grows up to the point of full maturity, but he just had to show it to her face and make her cry in the process. They didn't speak to each other since they entered the building, and their hands drifted apart when they finally reached the ground floor. Since the Media Club room was along the same path as the gym, they got separated as soon as she entered it. It didn't take that long until Tsukishima reached the gym. He removed his left hand from his pocket to take a look at it.

It was a good thing she didn't notice that it was bandaged. It got injured when he saved her from her second almost-death, so he knew she'd feel guilty and it will be harder for her to move on.

However, it will be harder for him to block spikes with his left hand.

Then again, why does he care? He sighed before entering the gym and saw his teammates doing diving drills. "Oi, Tsukishima! You're late!" Tanaka greeted the blonde, but Tsukishima just ignored him as he went to the bench. "Tsuki, what happened?" Yamaguchi immediately stopped doing the drills as he went to run to his friend out of concern. "Do you want to eat lunch first in the club room before joining us? You haven't eaten yet, right?" He followed. Tsukishima set down his bag and sat on the bench, realizing that dealing with the girl was exhausting. "Go on continue your practice. If you get scolded, it's not my fault. I'll go change in the club room." He told Yamaguchi, standing up again and carrying his bag as he made his way out the gym and to the clubroom.

"Tsukishima looks awfully tired. He's late again, too. I wonder if there's something going on." Sugawara worriedly commented. "Hmm? Nah, I think it's normal for smart students like him to feel stressed over the school work." Daichi shrugged it off with a smile, diving in again for another lap of drills.

As soon as Tsukishima reached the clubroom, he slumped against the wall. It really was tiring to get involved with her. Also, he wondered if she'd remain quiet in class all because of their deal about him passing the quiz and forcing them to fit in.

It annoyed him how quiet she became and how easy it was for her to ignore him when she wanted to. Maybe he liked it better when she was bugging him to his wit's end, after all.

* * *

"AH! ISHIKAWA'S HERE!"

Hirari's blood drained from her face when Hinata jumped around the gym, announcing her arrival. She started trembling on the spot. It was the first time she ever came there as herself and not as the mascot of Karasuno. "Oh? Really?" Azumane asked. "Oh, there she is!" Narita pointed to the door.

The girl took a deep breath. She was about to greet them, but then someone from behind her, entered the gym and accidentally bumped his shoulder on hers. "Ah, sor—"

She stared at Kageyama and he stared back. Not one of them said a word.

Until…

 _Smack_.

"OW! WHAT WAS THAT F—I mean, ouch. Why did you do that… desu?" Kageyama stopped yelling, realizing that it was no longer a crow he was talking to. He rubbed his back, failing to reach the spot that Hirari hit. "… Um… uh… SORRY! I THOUGHT I WAS STILL A BIRD!" The girl realized her mistake and bowed repeatedly to apologize. Kageyama had no idea how to respond and he was fidgeting on the spot, looking at Hinata, asking for help silently.

"Well… it's going to take a long time to get used to. Especially for Kageyama." Daichi sighed.

After the awkward meeting, the boys were back on court. Hirari brought out her video camera to record the plays, but she was only subconsciously filming the way Kageyama tosses the ball. It was a fast toss from a skilled setter, and she probably thought that the scene she was recording wasn't that useless. At least she was gathering information about the Karasuno's skilled setter, right?

Her gaze left the video camera's screen, as she viewed the practice game with her own eyes. Although she was uneasy, everything went slow as Kageyama tossed the ball up. The ball spun as it suspended itself midair. She had never seen something so fast, yet so slow at the same time. Azumane hit the ball to the other side. The ball was going fast on a straight line, and it took a while for Hirari to figure out that the ball was heading straight towards her. "EEK!" She moved to the side as the ball slammed hard on the wall where she originally stood.

She was sweating like crazy, still freaking out about how powerful that attack was. "Sorry! Are you okay!?" Azumane panicked.

Kageyama and Hinata both went to the bench to grab towels and water. The weather was strangely hot and the walls of the gym were not helping let in wind. Kageyama splashed the leftover water on his head to cool him and he ran a hand through his hair, his bangs falling back to place as his hand passed, to distribute the cold feeling the water brought to his nerves. He then shook his head softly; some of the water dripping from the tips of his bangs and slowly make a trail from his forehead down to the tip of his nose. Some drops even reached his lips, giving the slightly chapped edges the moisture it needed. He used a towel wipe off the water from his neck, although the collar of his v-neck shirt was already soaking, giving his shoulders a sticky feeling.

Beneath his damp bangs, his eyes looked at the girl who was messing with her video camera as she walked towards the bench to sit on it. She wiped her sweat off with her other hand and fanned herself with the same hand right after. She was focused on the camera, watching the replay of the things she had recorded. She saw a pair of feet walk in front of her through her peripheral vision and she looked up to see who it was.

Kageyama was observing her with a serious face. Her sweat started dripping faster due to nervousness. "You look hot." He said.

 _What?_

Hirari's whole face fumed in embarrassment. What she didn't know was that Kageyama was a pure and innocent boy who simply meant 'the hot weather's probably bothering you'.

She felt her nose getting all clogged, probably due to the blood that's about to come out. Before she could respond, Kageyama pressed a clean towel to her face and started wiping off the dirt, sweat, and oil off of it. Hirari's muffled complaints fell into deaf ears, since the 'pure-hearted' setter thought he was doing okay, although he didn't realize he was already suffocating her.

The other people who saw the rare moment stared at them in surprise. "K-Kageyama's actually trying to be nice… it's creepy." Hinata shuddered.

When the towel was finally off her face, Hirari gasped for air. She had no idea that he was _that_ awkward and rough around the edges. Kageyama examined her face and tilted his head, before nodding to himself proudly, blushing slightly before dropping the towel and heading back to court. Hinata jogged beside him and watched his rather normal-looking face. "What was that for?" The short boy asked.

"She was hot."

Hinata backed away, sending him a shocked facial expression.


	10. Chapter 10 Return to Society

**This story has the slowest pace so far among all the others I have written. Sorry for that ;_;**

 **I do not own Haikyuu!**

* * *

"W-Where are my shoes!?" Mashumaro frantically searched every nook and corner of the house for her school shoes, checking her necklace watch every now and then. "I'm going to be late at this rate. Where are they!?" She was screaming so loud that she ended up getting scolded. After searching the house for the third time, she fell to the floor on her knees, panting. She looked at the other pair of shoes on her shelves, noticing her old middle school shoes. They were already too small and tight for her feet, so she pondered about whether to use them and risk getting blisters or not.

She bit her thumb's nail, trying to decide quickly. She clicked on her necklace watch to open it, checking the time for the last moment. "CRAP!" She shouted, and took the shoes from the shelf without another word. At least she was going to switch to indoor shoes when she gets inside the school building, anyway.

* * *

The class representative stood in front of them, pointing at the words she wrote on the board with a ruler. "So… any suggestions?" She asked them all. The students of Class 3 looked at one another, shrugging their shoulders. "Come on, we should at least make the cultural festival fun! This only happens once a year! Come on, suggestions!" The representative started tapping the ruler on the board impatiently. Kageyama's seatmate, who was a girl, looked around the room like the rest of them. Her eyes stopped when she spotted Kageyama.

The boy was sipping milk from a carton, just reading the class representative's writings on the board. When he noticed his seatmate looking at him, he turned his head towards her and tried smiling, but the only thing he succeeded in doing was making the girl's heart jump in terror. She raised her hand without hesitation, much to the class representative's delight. "I-I suggest a horror house! Kageyama-kun inspired the idea!"

"How did I become the inspiration?" He asked, unaware and surprised. The class representative's eyes shone, a sense of enlightenment showering upon her. "Yes! That's it! Thrilling the hearts of students and visitors with the supernatural! Good job, Kageyama!" She said as she started erasing all the writings on the board and wrote 'Horror house ideas'. "Now all we have to do is think of ways to scare the visitors! We'll make sure they never forget the experience! You're a genius, Kageyama!"

Kageyama flinched, blinked, and just stared at her, confused.

* * *

Hirari slumped on her seat, doodling something on her notebook, although if anyone saw the drawing, it wouldn't look like it's just a doodle at all. She was using a pen, but her art didn't have sketch lines or messy parts. It looked neat as usual. "Alright, so if we're pushing the idea of a fortune-telling booth, we have to design the classroom in a mystical way or something. Maybe even create an illusion of a starry night sky! I recall constellations having something to do with fortune or something…" Their class representative announced, holding a list of things that the class will prepare for before the long-awaited week starts. "So first, we need someone who can draw pictures of constellations… and we also need a glass globe where we can put a light inside… hmm, how are we going to do this…"

As the discussion went on, Mashumaro's eyes gazed at her right foot. For some reason, even though she was already wearing her indoor shoes, it was starting to hurt. "It would also be nice if someone could draw the face of the one who's going to play fortuneteller so we can post it at the door. Traditional drawings are nicer in these circumstances than printed pictures. Unfortunately, you guys focus more on academics and studies than creative work, so…" She heard the class representative say. She looked up, almost boring a hole on the back of Hirari's head because of her intense stare. Unfortunately, Hirari was busy doodling, not even minding the countless opportunities she could take just from listening to their class's ideas. Instead of forcing her to raise her hand and take the bait, Mashumaro dropped the subject before even starting it, and placed her arms on the desk. Her head bent down to rest on them, closing her eyes to give them a break from the light, although she could still hear the class representative's voice. "Who's going to volunteer to bring spare yards of cloth for the curtains and the table?" She asked. A bunch of students raised their hands, mostly girls.

Tsukishima's cheek was resting against his palm in a lazy fashion while his elbow was on the desk. His other hand rubbed his left eye, slightly shifting the eyeglasses from its normal position. He was really sleepy and bored. If only he knew homeroom was going to be taken over by the class representatives of each room to announce the upcoming festival, he shouldn't have gone early. A thought crossed his mind, and he realized that ever since the girls beside him stopped making their usual noise, he was back to his quiet school life.

But it was definitely boring and quiet. It's been two days since Mashumaro woke up from her imaginative world. The slap back to reality must have been a lot to take in. All it took was 45 minutes to convince her that she is as normal as the rest of the human world.

The class representative went around, asking the students who raised their hands about what they can bring tomorrow so they can start their work. Passing by Hirari's and Tsukishima's seats, she glanced over to the girl's notebook and saw a drawing of setter about to toss the ball high up. The drawing was sketchy, but it was vivid and the body can be distinguished well. Her eyes widened in amazement, not realizing that there was a budding talent within their class after all this time. She had seen Hirari's comics for the newspaper before, but those were mainly cartoons and chibi people. It was the first time she had ever seen the artist draw something so real.

"… YOU'RE HIRED!" She said, making Hirari lift her head from the notebook hastily and jump aback, causing the chair fall backward. The chair didn't fall to the floor, instead, it hit Mashumaro's desk so hard, and it shook her from her solitude and made her look up in shock, accidentally hitting her knee under the table. Not realizing that she was the only pillar that stopped the table supporting Hirari's chair from moving, she moved her seat backward and raised her leg, clutching her knee in pain. In turn, the table also moved backward because of Hirari's weight, until the girl's chair continued its fall and she hit the floor excruciatingly.

That was the day both girls thanked their conservative ways for always wearing cycling shorts beneath their skirts.

"Ow…" Both girls hummed. Mashumaro didn't even know how she became involved with this. "Ah! I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" The class representative helped Hirari up, while Tsukishima and the others watched with wide eyes. "I didn't know you were that good! I mean, okay so maybe it's partly my fault for not finding out what you're good at when you first came into this class… I mean, well… err…" The class representative didn't want to admit it, but like most people, she saw the artist as an outcast.

Now, she's actually trying to ask for help from the girl she once shunned and she's actually ashamed of it.

"Can you, um, be the one to draw a portrait of whoever's going to play fortuneteller?" She twiddled with her fingers, unable to look into the eyes of Hirari. The latter tilted her head, wondering what in the world their class representative was so nervous about. "It's okay, but I'm not good at putting detail on realistic drawings, though." Hirari answered, blushing a bit in embarrassment. "Hey, is this Kagey—" Mashumaro peeked on her desk, but Hirari's hand covered the former's mouth before she could continue her statement. "Ha… ha… so I'm not sure if I can really draw the portrait of, umm…" Hirari couldn't focus on their conversation, because Mashumaro was lifting the notebook from her desk and was too oblivious to the fact that Tsukishima's attention was now on the notebook. Before Tsukishima could even see who's on it, Hirari slammed Mashumaro's hand, along with the notebook, back on the table. "U-Um, well, you see, I am an artist but I'm not, uhhhhh…" Hirari was trying to say, but the class representative only gave her weird looks of confusion.

Hirari's eyes were more focused on Mashumaro, who was now messing with Hirari's bag. She took out Hirari's earphones. The wires accidentally pulled out Hirari's sketchpad by accident, and it dropped open on the floor. There was another drawing, and it had a certain spiker and setter on it. "Oops." Mashumaro reacted. Before anyone else could react, Hirari dropped flat on the floor, covering the sketchpad with her body. "YES! YES, I'LL DO IT! I'LL DO IT! PLEASE REFRAIN FROM LOOKING OVER HERE!" Hirari shouted at the class representative. "O-Oh… I see. Okay, I'm counting on you." The latter bowed down before continuing on her way to interview the other students in the room. Hirari stood up, not noticing that Tsukishima was still watching her. "That's so sweet of you." He commented with a smirk. Hirari froze, sensing the sarcasm in his voice. He made it clear that he had seen the drawing wit just one cynical statement. She picked up the sketchpad from the floor and smacked her face with it repeatedly. "Unless you want to confess to the King with a flat face, I suggest you stop doing that." Tsukishima teased again. "THERE'S NOTHING TO CONFESS!" Hirari yelled. She shoved both her notebook and sketchpad back into the bag, worried about the project that has been given to her. Other than the Media Club president, Saruhiko, this was the first time she was asked to do something for a useful purpose.

Meanwhile, Mashumaro had the earphones on while playing with her DS game. "I wonder how the man who first drank cow's milk _discovered_ cow's milk?" She randomly asked no one in particular as she connected the cord of the earphones to her DS. Hirari's attention was back to Mashumaro. "That was so random!" She said. Yamaguchi was on his way to Tsukishima's seat, and he just happened to look at Mashumaro's DS. "You like video games?" The freckled boy asked her. Mashumaro looked behind her and smiled. "Yep. Is it a bit out of character?" She chuckled. "N-No, not at all. Well… a little. I thought you were all pen and paper." Yamaguchi admitted, a bit shy. Instead of commenting, the girl just laughed again. "Maro, why don't you try volunteering for something, too?" Hirari sat back on her seat and opened a textbook so she could study for the next class.

"They wouldn't want me to help them, I think." Mashumaro honestly told them, although she was still smiling. Their conversation was interrupted when the class representative clapped her hands to get everyone's attention. "Okay, so if anyone else wants to contribute for something, just come to my desk! Homeroom period's over, so I guess it's time for us to arrange everything before the teacher comes."

* * *

Shimizu knocked on the wall just beside the gym's door when she entered. "Excuse me; I'm just going to inform you that the Media Club is going to observe us during the practice match today." She told them, grabbing the attention of those nearest to the door. She then went towards the bench, with two trembling girls behind her. "Why do they have to stare?" Mashumaro complained with a whispery voice. She opened the folder she was holding, slightly wincing after every step. Her right foot is still hurt. Hirari was pointing the video camera at the court to capture the players' positions. "Looks like a line-up. The match is starting." She informed her companion. They stood near the bench, refusing to sit when Yachi offered hers. "Let's play!" They watched the boys bow to their opponents, which came from a public high school somewhere in the prefecture.

Mashumaro dropped the folder, making Hirari look at her. She saw Mashumaro's eyes widen and her hands were shaking crazily. "…Why?" Hirari asked. "… Stop watching from the video camera and start seeing it live. Look at them!" Mashumaro pointed at the court, her voice sounded shaky and out-of-tune. Hirari looked at the court with her own eyes instead of watching from the video camera. Her mouth hung agape and she felt her heart pound wildly against her chest. It felt as if the whole atmosphere changed as Kageyama jumped up for a serve, scoring a service ace. No, even before Kageyama served, Hirari knew that the tension in the air would increase, seeing Mashumaro's previous reaction.

The first rally started.

The ball was passed to a "dude with long black hair", according to Hirari. Then the opposing setter tossed it to a "blonde person" before the said blonde spiked it… but Tsukishima was able to block it and it never got past the defense of Karasuno. "Nice, Tsukishima!" Tanaka called out. They took the first point, now it's on to the second. It was almost like the first, except the opponent used a pipe and the setter tossed it to their other spiker at the back line. It reached Karasuno's side of the net, but Daichi was able to receive it. Kageyama positioned for the toss and all three spikers – Hinata, Tanaka, and Azumane – ran towards the net. The choice was clear to Kageyama.

The ball went to Hinata and another point was set.

Mashumaro picked the folder up and gripped it tightly to her chest. She hasn't watched a volleyball match for ages, but the thrill was still real to her. Hirari, too, was already shaking in excitement. The boys' auras were real, the game was real, those points they took were real, and the feeling was real.

This is the real world. And one little practice match served as their first step. They both remained silent as they watched with wide eyes and a giddy heart as the game continued. They were all talented players, and for once, Mashumaro realized her wrong way of writing the sports news. "… Wow." Both girls didn't realize that they weren't breathing until they spoke. "Left!" Azumane called, receiving the ball from Kageyama before slamming it hard on the other side. When they finally reached an 8-2 score, the other team called for a timeout. The players ran to their respective coaches. Yachi and Shimizu went around passing towels and water jugs to the Karasuno boys. "Looks like the quicks are working as usual, although throwing a few feints and dumps every now and then will help throw them off. They aren't a nationals-level team, but they sure are fast. One blocker touched the ball while it was being spiked by Hinata, too." Ukai crossed his arms. Hinata, who was usually a beaming happy person, looked frustrated. Hirari cringed at the serious faces. "They look so hyped and serious, it's almost scary." She whispered to Mashumaro. The latter tilted her head to look at the boys and it is just as Hirari said. "A boost in morale will help." She reassured Hirari, obviously planning something. "Here's what we're going to do…"

"So, anyway, they'll get used to the freak quick if we keep using it… and it's going to be a big problem since it's our only weapon to face their speed head-on… the blockers are really fast." Ukai finished, glancing at all their faces. They all know that the point difference will narrow if they keep using the freak quick and the blockers would get used to it. "… We're going to focus on using Hinata as decoy for Azumane and Tanaka, putting in a few quicks here and there if the blockers can't catch up to him." The coach decided. "Hey, King!" A small, cheerful voice interrupted everyone's serious talk. They all flinched at the disturbance and looked to their side to see Mashumaro waving happily.

"Wasn't she trembling in fear just earlier?" Kazuhito whispered to Sugawara. "Who knows?" Sugawara looked as confused as everyone else. No one knows who the girl really was and the only one in the team who had spent the most time with her was Tsukishima, although no one knew that except Yamaguchi. Kageyama's eyes twitched. "Don't call me that." He threatened, but Mashumaro only skipped toward him with the same smiling face. "But you're a King, right? Why would such a kingly talent be stuck on such a dumb face?" She asked, opening her folder and taking out a pen. The whole Karasuno volleyball club stared at the girl in shock, contemplating about whether she didn't know what she was doing or if she was _that_ brave. A vein popped on Kageyama's forehead and he was starting to lose his cool. "HA!?" He yelled, towering over the small girl. Instead of cowering in fear, the girl just chuckled. "Oh. You're back to normal. Good." She told him. Ukai's eyes widened at the scene. "She was just trying to remove the pressure?" He said to himself.

"Not all kings are dictators." Hirari chimed in.

The attention went from Mashumaro to Hirari. The girl was recording the scene between Kageyama and Mashumaro. "They're just born different." She told Kageyama, making the setter freeze on the spot, biting his lip. Mashumaro then laughed, grasping the fact that her theory was correct. Hirari's voice can _really_ calm Kageyama down. She looked behind her to make eye contact with Hirari and grinned. She then turned back to Kageyama, who was still pondering about what they were saying. "You're all tense and nervous because the opponents caught up with the last quick by Hinata, right? Well, we're watching from the sidelines without pressure and stress, and I think your plays are fine." Mashumaro smacked a hand on Kageyama's shoulder. "Karasuno is not a monarchy. It's a democracy." She reminded them. Upon hearing her words, Hinata and Nishinoya went back to their simple selves. "THAT SOUNDS SO COOL! A DEMOCRACY!"

Mashumaro nodded and went back to her spot, nudging Hirari on the arm. The latter looked at Kageyama and although she was nervous, she gave him a small smile. "You're a King, but in this team… everyone is." She told him shyly, her voice barely audible. Kageyama's shoulders tensed and his lips quivered. A blush appeared on his face out of excitement. "YES! Thank you!" He bowed to Hirari, before the whistle signaled everyone to return to court. Tsukishima stole a glimpse of Mashumaro and he looked away quickly, smiling awkwardly. "You're so annoying." He whispered, indirectly referring to her.

"Hey, why did you have to insult him before I said something?" Hirari asked her friend, a bit confused about the 'plan' earlier. Mashumaro was humming a song joyfully while writing on a paper attached to the folder. "We can't boost their morale if the talented setter is aggravated. In order to return Kageyama to his normal self, I had to tease him with the nickname so everyone could forget about the game for a while and focus on what was going on in front of them. I caught their attention, right? So when you interrupt, all attention will be focused on you."

Hirari's mouth hung agape. She had no idea that her friend could control a whole team's psyche with words. The words she uses to write are the same words she could use to help a person. "I wonder when I get to help someone with my abilities, too…" She mumbled, not realizing that Mashumaro could hear her quite well. "The festival. You've been asked to help, right? Go on. You want to socialize and get along with the others, so I think it's time you get out of your shell. I'm not one to talk, though." The other girl said with a smile. It was like the usual conversations they have.

They watched as the boys continue their game, returning serves and doing quicks. Tsukishima sometimes pulls off feints while Hinata cleared the path for Azumane's spikes. Even Kageyama started doing dump shots. They have outsmarted the opponent into thinking the freak quick was their only weapon. "Why did we help them again?" Hirari asked. "Because they helped us." Mashumaro answered, remembering the first time Hinata spiked a ball in front of them, Kageyama taking off Hirari's mascot head, Tsukishima saving her from the fall and showing her the Magnus effect, and now, they are watching a practice game which had moves like nothing they had seen before.

Those were all real.

 _Bam._

Another point for Karasuno. Kageyama wiped off the sweat dripping from his chin, and he looked at the bench for a split second before focusing back on the game. Hirari felt her heart stop. "Did you see that, Maro!?" She tugged at Mashumaro's sleeves violently, making the other girl accidentally drop her folder. "What? What? What see what?" A sweat drop fell from her head. Hirari stopped the recording, and replayed the last video at the last part. "Look! Look at him!" She zoomed in the video to Kageyama's face and played it on slow-motion.

The video camera captured Kageyama's smile.

* * *

The game was finished not long after. Karasuno had won. After the lineup, everyone scrambled to clean up the gym. Hirari was about to go outside the gym when someone called her. "Hey."

She turned her head and saw Kageyama holding a ball. She thought that he must have picked it up while cleaning the gym. He looked up, then down, and his head started swaying. His fingers tapped on the ball he was holding, and he looked like he was about to burst it. He even had a frustrated scowl on his face. "I-I want to r-r-r-return the fav—oh, wait!" He got distracted when Yachi passed by behind Hirari with the cart of balls. Hirari held her breath when Kageyama stepped forward and had to circle his arm around Hirari's neck just to drop the ball into the cart. Her lips were barely touching his collarbone due to the severe closeness. Unfortunately for her, Kageyama moved to reach the cart, so her lips slightly brushed against it. Her whole face fumed red and she pursed her lips, moving her head backward. Kageyama then stepped backward to his original position. "I-I want to… r-return the f-f-favor…" The words hardly escaped his mouth and it was an awkward situation for both of them.

"But, uh… It's Maro you should thank, though." She told him. Hinata ran towards them and jumped between them, disrupting the awkwardness of the situation. "Hey, hey! Ishikawa! You guys helped us a lot earlier! That was a cool speech!" The shorter boy commented excitedly. Hirari waved her hands in defense in front of her. "I-It wasn't exactly a speech!" She told him. "Are you guys going to visit again tomorrow? Unfortunately, our gym's going to be turned into a café for the cultural festival, so we have to find another place in the meantime…" Hinata gritted his teeth in annoyance. "Oh… yeah, but I… I can't go… I have to practice drawing… well, I'm actually assigned to draw a person's face for our classroom's idea and I'm not that good, so I think I have to—" "You can draw Kageyama! He's really easy to draw! His eyes look like evil slits, his hair is just plain and boring, too!"

Both Hirari and Kageyama shot their heads towards Hinata in surprise. "DUMBASS! How can she do that if she's not coming tomorrow!? AND WHO ARE YOU CALLING SLIT-EYED?" Kageyama punched Hinata's head, although he subtly touched his bangs with his other hand, wondering if his hair does look plain and boring. Hirari shrieked at the violence in front of her. "That's why I told her to draw you! So she can come with us tomorrow!" Hinata yelled back. Hirari gulped.

 _This is not good. This is noooot good._

* * *

"I'm home!" Mashumaro dropped her bag so she could take off her shoes. Her feet were probably swelling by now. As she took her right shoe off, and removed her socks, she sighed in dismay.

She had bleeding blisters all over her foot. She thought the left one was probably the same. "Perfect timing. Ugh, they look disgusting." She said to herself. "I hope they heal by tomorrow."


	11. Chapter 11 How To Be Productive

She had just finished bandaging her foot right after taking a bath early. To prepare for the festival, all classes were asked to participate in decorating the school and starting their assigned ideas, so she didn't have to rush today. Her feet still had bleeding wounds and she didn't want to worsen it. She heard someone knock on her bedroom window, startling her. She stared at the window before crawling towards it, pretending to be a ninja. Afterwards, she opened the window slightly and took a peek.

But she saw another eye staring back at her.

"GAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!" Both of them shrieked upon being greeted by each of their eyes. The girl outside fell from the window, as she was only holding herself up with her arms on the windowsill. Mashumaro had both hands on her chest, still unable to recover from the horror the day brought to her. She opened both windows and looked outside, discovering that it was Hirari all along. She looked quite dressed up with a casual sleeveless hoodie and shorts, since the weather was hot. Mashumaro had a bad feeling about this. Hirari stood up from the ground, grinning widely at Mashumaro. "So, I asked Miss Prez if it's okay we take a day-off from the scoop, and, umm…" She twiddled her fingers and avoided eye contact. "She asked me if she could see my media journal… and she scolded me because we only gathered information about one practice match and the rest are… um… embarrassing stories." She explained.

Mashumaro face-palmed. This was going to be a long day. "But my feet are bleeding. I don't want to run around and end up patching it up with new bandages every hour." She complained, obviously reluctant to go although she did want to watch them again. They didn't have magic powers… but they could fly. "That's okay! We can borrow a wheelchair from the infirmary! It's a school activity, anyway, so we can get a permit or something." Hirari still didn't budge. She was going to make Mashumaro come with her whether the latter liked it or not. "But… I don't want to talk to the nurse and bother people…" Mashumaro reasoned out again.

Anyway, Hirari still won the argument.

* * *

"Spiking practice!" Ukai called out. Luckily, the neighborhood association gave the boys directions to the court where they play during their free time. Shimizu and Yachi made sure to pack up everything the players need, including extra knee pads. The players had their own materials though, since they were all excited to try out a new court near the ocean where they could breathe in both mountain air and the scent of seawater at the same time. They were refreshed as ever. "Game!" The two managers threw the ball over both Sugawara's and Kageyama's heads so they could toss to the incoming spikers. Meanwhile, Nishinoya was on the other side, preparing to receive whatever he can. The hardest to receive was Asahi's because of the strength of his hands, although if Hinata did the quick right now, it would be impossible for Nishinoya to get.

"Next! Receiving!" Ukai commanded, as he served balls to the other side of the court as the players fell in line to continue their warm-up. "The fresh air around these parts must have pumped them up." Yachi commented from the sidelines. "Yes. They all look well-rested." Shimizu replied as they watched Hinata get hit by the serve to the face. "Dumbass!" Kageyama yelled. "Try again!" Ukai served another ball. This time, Hinata was able to receive it, but not cleanly. Then the next receiver moved forward.

When everyone was able to go through five cycles of receiving, Ukai asked them to take a break for a while before they start a practice match and divide the players into teams. "Oi! Kageyama! Wear knee pads! We're near a slope, so it's easy to fall and get injured!" Nishinoya scolded Kageyama, who took off his knee pads for a while, since his legs were already sweating. "Oh, yes." Kageyama nodded, as he drank water from his jug. "Excuse me, sensei. Is there a bathroom around here?" He went towards Takeda. The teacher smiled at the setter and pointed down the slope. "There's one, but it's located down the slope, so it's pretty tiring to go back and forth from here to there." Kageyama bowed his head in gratefulness before heading down.

Meanwhile, after two hours of wandering around the place, Hirari and Mashumaro were able to find them. Hirari was the more exhausted one, since she had to push the wheelchair up the high slope just to get there. She fell to her knees when the court came in sight and panted. "You… you're… so… lucky…" Hirari managed to complain in the midst of catching her breath. Mashumaro was only smiling at her, teasing her. "It's not easy moving around with bleeding feet, you know. Besides, this was _your_ idea." She reminded Hirari. The latter looked dead-tired although it was still in the middle of the morning. Mashumaro stood up, thinking that it will be fine since the court was just a few steps away. "Alright, let's start practice! Where's Kageyama?" Ukai asked. Hinata looked around and found the two girls. "HEY! THEY CAME!" He exclaimed, running towards the girls. Nishinoya and Tanaka followed right after, with both Daichi and Sugawara running after them to calm them down.

Hirari had her back turned since she was talking to Mashumaro. However, Mashumaro noticed the boys running towards them, which made her recoil and step aside. She pushed Hirari's shoulder forward so she could see what was coming. "YOU GUYS ARE HERE!" The three noisiest Karasuno members jumped so high, it made Hirari squeal in surprise as soon as she turned to face them. "Hey! Don't jump at women! It's rude and ungentlemanly!" Sugawara pulled the back of Tanaka's and Nishinoya's shirts. However, Hirari accidentally stepped backward and tripped making her fall down on Mashumaro's wheelchair. Mashumaro acted on reflex and tried to grab unto it, but it was too late.

The wheelchair went speeding downhill with Hirari on it. "WAAAAAAAAAH HEEEEELP!" The poor girl was crying. Those who witnessed the incident had incredibly astounded reactions on their faces, accompanied by screams of all pitches. "… And I told them to be careful." Ukai massaged his temples when he saw what just happened. "R-RUN AFTER HER, YOU IDIOTS!" Daichi started running, but forgot that the slope was too steep and he almost crashed his face on the ground, but Sugawara had grabbed his arm before another accident could happen. Azumane, who had just arrived at the scene, looked as terrified as ever.

On the other hand, Hirari was already going too fast. "I-IS THIS IT!? IS THIS HOW I'M GOING TO DIE!? I'M GOING TO JUMP AT THE SEA IF I HIT THE—WAH!" She raised her legs to the seat when she felt the wheelchair hit someone. She looked up and up and up… and saw Kageyama hanging on for dear life. The worst part? His arms were the only things stopping their faces from crashing into each other and their legs were so close to being intertwined. "W-WHAT ARE YOU DOING!? STEER IT!" Kageyama could never forget the day he went out the restroom only to be greeted by a racing wheelchair. "W-Wha-!? I can't just—" Hirari suddenly grabbed hold onto Kageyama when she realized they were so close to hitting the railings. Kageyama was inwardly panicking, but all he could see was the trail the wheelchair was leaving on the slope. He needed to find a way to turn around so he could steer the wheelchair. One of his hands circled around Hirari's waist and in a swift movement, his other hand went under her legs before he abruptly switched places with her. "H-HEY! DON'T TOUCH ME LIKE THAT! NOT EVEN MY DAD HAS CARRIED ME LIKE THAT EVER SINCE I TURNED TWELVE, YOU KNOW!" Hirari covered both her faces in embarrassment. "Great. Now I'm never getting married." She huffed. "Now's not the time to complain!" Kageyama was now sitting on the wheelchair, with Hirari sitting on him bridal style. He tried steering the wheels but they were moving so fast, his hands felt like they were hit by an electric fan's blades. Only a matter of seconds before they hit the railings, and there was no chance of stopping at their speed. "Tsk!" He clicked his tongue, carrying Hirari again and lifting both his feet to step on the wheelchair seat. "Close your eyes if you're scared of heights!" He ordered her, but his voice sounded so panicked, Hirari couldn't understand a thing. "What?"

Before Kageyama could answer, he jumped up at the same time the wheelchair hit the railings. The impact also made the wheelchair suspend in air. Kageyama shifted his hands to her waist and Hirari placed hers around his neck out of instinct. Then he embraced her tightly and positioned her on top so he could cushion her fall.

"Ow!" They ended up hitting lots of tree branches on their way down. Luckily, the hill wasn't as high as they thought it was, and the last branch stopped their momentum. Kageyama hit the ground painfully, but Hirari suffered less. They lie there on the ground, still on their original positions. Upon realizing it, Hirari opened her eyes and jumped away. Kageyama was still unconscious. "W-wha—KAGEYAMAAAA! HEY, IT'S NOT FUNNY! WAKE UP!" She shook him. There was no response. "No, wait! Hey, hey!" Hirari gulped, thinking of something she really didn't want to do. She swallowed her saliva nervously before leaning down on him and placing her ear on his chest awkwardly with both of her hands to support her. A blush crept up to her cheeks when she realized that Kageyama's body was slim and firm. She shook her head, trying to concentrate on finding his heartbeat. She closed her eyes to listen.

His heartbeat was fast, probably due to the adrenaline earlier, but it became slow and steady. She could also feel his chest move against her cheek, because of his relaxed breathing. "Ah… he's alive." For some reason, his heartbeat was like music to her ears. It felt soothing, but she didn't want to be labeled as a pervert so she sat upright and looked around, pretending that she did not touch him. Fortunately, they were the only people in the area near the sea surrounded by tree. The wheelchair was nowhere to be found. It probably reached the sea and sank because of the impact earlier. She just sat there, waiting for Kageyama to wake up. He must have hit his head when he fell.

Kageyama's arms had scrapes and scratches all over it, and Hirari felt guilty for that. She took out a handkerchief from her pocket and tied his left bleeding arm with it. "I hope they find us soon." She looked up to the railing where they fell from. Looking back at Kageyama, she unconsciously ran her soft fingertips to move his bangs away from his face. Kageyama's face slightly winced upon being tickled, but it went back to normal. "In the meantime, I'll take care of you." Hirari whispered into his ear.

* * *

Mashumaro was sitting near the slope, trying to think of all possible outcomes of the incident. Hirari is only either dead or alive, that's what she thought. "… We went here to practice and Kageyama's _nowhere_ to be found." Ukai was stressed as ever. Daichi and Sugawara were both asking the team about who would be willing to volunteer to find Hirari. Mashumaro sighed and tried standing up, even though blood was starting to stain the bandages on her feet. She looked at the seniors, a bit guilty and scared. "It's okay. I'll look for her! You guys should continue practice. You want to reach the nationals, right?" She spoke up, biting her lip in nervousness when everyone turned to look at her. Although she was brave enough to boost their morale the day before, this was a different matter now. The wheelchair wouldn't even be there in the first place if her feet weren't hurting and everyone wouldn't have problems right now. Instead of confidently telling her that they'd do it, the boys looked at one another and Sugawara laughed. "I think we have to compensate. After all, our problem children jumped at you and made Ishikawa fall to the wheelchair." He waved his hand in front of his nose as if to gesture that it's all fine. Daichi nodded in agreement. "So we're going to take a look at the grove down the hill by the sea and look for her. Your friend could be really injured so we have to hurry." The captain reassured her.

Mashumaro was about to say something again, but she felt a hand grip on the back of her collar. She looked behind her and saw Tsukishima looking down at her. "I'm looking forward to seeing you run around the place with bleeding feet." He sarcastically told her. She tilted her head curiously at him. "You noticed?" She asked. "Everyone did, though." Yamaguchi commented. "It's why the third-years volunteered to do it instead of letting you go there alone. It'll only make things worse." He explained. Mashumaro sighed. She knew it was a bad idea to go there in her current state. "You need to gather data on our practices, right?" Tsukishima suddenly asked her. She nodded without saying a word. "Okay." He then turned her around to face him and put both his hands on her shoulders. She looked up at him, astonished. "Can you walk?" He asked again. Mashumaro nodded. "Good. Then I don't have to sling you over my shoulder." He then walked away, gesturing for her to just follow him to the bench. Yamaguchi and Mashumaro stared as he walked away. Both were really dumbfounded. They then went towards the court themselves. Yamaguchi didn't walk fast since he was waiting for Mashumaro to catch up as they walked. When they finally reached the bench, Shimizu already had spare bandages on-hand. Mashumaro was forced to sit down despite her protests and the bespectacled manager started replacing her bandages with a new patch. "You're lousy at putting on bandages, by the way." Tsukishima said before going back to court.

In the meantime, Ukai was able to make do with the players who were left on the court even though some of the second and third years went to find Hirari and Kageyama, who they thought got lost on the way to the restroom. Ennoshita tossed the ball lightly, and Tsukishima jumped up to spike. Mashumaro inwardly squealed when she saw how gigantic Tsukishima looked when his jump enhanced his height. "I'm not going to lose! Toss! Send me a toss!" Hinata called before running towards the net. Mashumaro gasped for a bit when Hinata made his jump. It was higher than usual. "Done. I think you'll be fine if you rest for a while." Shimizu told her with a smile. Mashumaro blushed. She had never seen someone so pretty before. She was unable to say anything due to awe until Shimizu went back to her seat on the bench. "Alright, left!" Azumane called. With one strong spike, he was able to thwart the defenses of the other side. "This is unfair! Why are all the tall players on the other team!?" Hinata started complaining since he just realized that both Azumane and Tsukishima were on the other side of the net. Kageyama wasn't there so they couldn't do any freak quicks, too. Mashumaro took out a pen and paper from her backpack and started writing their plays. "… Azumane… the most powerful attacker… I see…" She mumbled to herself. She wondered if she had to interview them about their heights. The managers probably have the basic information, though. She watched them go on with their practices for a while, with a few mistakes here and there. One of them usually goes to the bench to wipe their sweat or to replenish their fluids. In the end, Mashumaro got bored of writing so she started drawing on the paper. She heard footsteps but she didn't look up to see who it was. "Here!" Yachi handed the person a jug of water. "Thanks." He took it from the manager's hands and was about to drink when he noticed the drawing. "Triceratops?" He asked.

Mashumaro glanced up and saw Tsukishima looking slightly interested in whatever she was doodling at the back of the paper. "… You like dinosaurs?" She asked back. Tsukishima got annoyed when she answered his question with another question, but he decided to ignore it. "I like dragons… and, well… dinosaurs resemble dragons, so… yeah." Mashumaro started talking without even waiting for his answer. She suddenly felt a weight over her head. It was something cold, and it soothed her head. One hand made its way to the thing on her head, accidentally touching Tsukishima's long fingers. "Water jug?" She guessed. "For what?" She looked up at him questioningly. "For you. Duh." He answered before leaving the water jug in her grip and going back to court. Mashumaro raised an eyebrow at the silent kindness the blonde was oddly showing. The weird part was that he was just being kind to her when nobody's watching. Well, Yamaguchi's probably an exemption.

She touched the water jug's tip, wondering why it was wet. Then she drank from it, realizing how thirsty she actually was. "Um…" Yamaguchi's voice made her look to her side while drinking. "… Tsuki just… drank from that bottle."

Mashumaro choked on the water and started coughing. "SERIOUSLY?" Her voice became a bit louder than it usually is. She had just received an indirect kiss from Tsukishima Kei. What was she supposed to feel, then? She stared at Yamaguchi, narrowing her eyes. "W-Wait! I don't think he actually purposely intentionally surely deliberately certainly did that for that purpose! T-Tsuki respects girls! I… think." Yamaguchi held out his hands in defense, panicking. Mashumaro, being the kind of person who doesn't jump into conclusions, believed him without hesitation.

After a while the game ended and Ukai gave them fifteen minutes to take a break. "We can't really be productive if the others aren't here yet, though." He remarked. "Don't worry! I'm sure they'll find Kageyama and the Media girl in no time!" Takeda patted a hand on Ukai's back to calm him down. Mashumaro was now staring off into space, daydreaming about mosquitoes transforming into unicorns and battling goats. She stood up and tried to move her feet. Thankfully, because of the medicine and bandages, her feet were slowly getting better. She was so focused on her feet that she accidentally bumped her head against Tsukishima's back while he was talking to Azumane. "Ah! Sorry!" She clumsily laughed while rubbing the back of her head. Tsukishima just looked at her. His eyes went from her to outside the court, noticing two men eyeing her. From the short distance, he could hear them talking about how slender Mashumaro's neck was and how nice she looks. He looked at Mashumaro again; she seemed to have no idea about how dangerous the world was to a girl. "… Uh, what?" She asked, wondering why his face was all scrunched up. "Just how much of an idiot, are you?" At the corner of his eye, he saw the two men coming closer to them since they were just a few steps away from outside the area. One man cleared his throat. "Hey there, cutie." He said reaching out a hand to touch the girl's arm. Before Mashumaro could even look at the person, a large hand went to the back of her head and she found herself buried into Tsukishima's chest. The two men felt electricity run down their skin, making all their hairs stand up when their eyes came in contact with Tsukishima's, as he lowered his glasses with his other hand.

" **I dare you."**

When Mashumaro could finally see, she only saw the two men running for their lives. "…?" Was written all over her face. Before she could ask him, Tsukishima was already walking away from her. Even though her feet haven't fully recovered yet, she still tailed after him, anyway. "If you wanted a hug, you should have just said so." She innocently told him. Tsukishima stopped in his tracks, only to feel the girl's head bump into his back again. He turned around, and she fell forward, grabbing hold onto his arms. He watched her rub her forehead in pain right after. "If _you_ wanted a hug, _you_ should have just said so." He repeated with a smirk. Mashumaro's whole face heated up in embarrassment and she spun on her heels, deciding to just go away. "So you're scared of hugs?" He called out, taunting her. She looked back at him and frowned. "No! Hugs are really warm and nice! Why would I be scared?" She answered bravely, furious about the guy's weird personality. "Then prove it." He shrugged his shoulders smugly. Mashumaro started trembling on the spot, looking around to see if anyone's watching. Fortunately, most of them went to the bathroom, bought food somewhere down the street, and the rest have their own conversations. She timidly walked back towards Tsukishima and gulped. He was just patiently observing her every move. She tried opening her arms awkwardly, but she couldn't step forward any longer because she wasn't ready to close off the distance so she closed her eyes. She was shivering all over, even her lips.

She felt something warm brush against her, closing off the distance between them. It was chaste and quick since the hands on her back didn't even last a second. When the warmth was gone, she opened one eye before another.

She wanted to die right there and then when she saw Hirari with a video camera a few meters away from her. "So _this_ is what you're doing when I'm not around, huh?" Hirari had an incredibly look of pure evil on her face. "Oh, don't worry. I'll make sure this'll go to the headlines." She said. Mashumaro threw her bag at Hirari's face. "WHEN DID YOU GET HERE!?" She looked around and found Tsukishima silently walking away as if nothing happened.

Meanwhile, Daichi and Sugawara looked at each other and grinned. "Even though we just found her sleeping on Kageyama's arm earlier…" Daichi sighed heavily, tired from all the activity. "Their noses were even rubbing against each other, too." Sugawara laughed.

* * *

Hinata yawned as he entered his classroom. Everyone was busy designing the whole room for the festival. He went to his seat, still sleepy. "Hey! Look at this article about the volleyball club! It looks so cool! And… wait, isn't this Hinata?" His ears perked up and his energy was suddenly restored when he heard his classmate's words. He slid to the place where a crowd of people were at. "What's that? What article?" He tried pushing against his classmates and saw them reading a newspaper. One of them pointed towards a picture. It was a sketch of Hinata spiking the ball. "Read it, Hinata!"

Hinata grabbed the newspaper from the table and started reading it, his mind getting all jumbled up due to severe excitement. "Woah! Cool drawing!" His eyes scanned the words and he was even more amazed when he saw the headline. _"FLY, KARASUNO!"_

" _They aren't a flock of birds."_

Kageyama went to his desk to find a sketchpad page on it. He picked it up, confused as to who owned it. Turning it around, he saw a sketch of his sleeping face, calmly resting on the grass.

" _They are a murder of crows."_


	12. Chapter 12 How To Be Productive 2

Saruhiko read the article over and over again, feeling proud. She looked up at the two aspiring talents in front of her, nodding approvingly. "Good job, girls." For the first time, Mashumaro heard praise from her. It actually felt really amazing. "Kaji… with just that simple headline, I can say you have changed. The old you would have put ' _Karasuno will soon soar higher than eagles!'_ and that's an exaggerated prediction. I was a bit surprised to see the simple headline. But it meant a lot. You're great." The president clapped her hands. "I'm looking forward to your future work. But in the meantime, let's prepare for the cultural festival. The teachers are expecting a lot. Let's try to write about it in the next newspaper."

Hirari and Mashumaro bowed to their president before going outside the clubroom. They bumped fists and they could hardly contain their happiness. "WE DID IT!" Who knew that the recently improving Karasuno boys' volleyball club was the key to their own improvements?

* * *

Hirari was talking to their class representative, as she started giving orders to divide the work. Tsukishima was forced to hold up the cloth to the windows so the girls could measure the curtains. He looked more annoyed than he ever was, since he was just asked to do it because of his immense height and he was the only person in class capable to reach above the windows. Although Yamaguchi wanted to help, Tsukishima told him he could do it so Yamaguchi was asked by the class representative to help the other boys do some of the heavy work instead. The only person who wasn't doing anything was of course, Mashumaro.

Unlike Hirari, Mashumaro still refused to show what she can do for everyone. It's not that she didn't want to help; she just thought they wouldn't want her help, anyway. She just sat there, drawing something on a piece of paper. She did know how to draw, thanks to Hirari's constant persuading to teach her personally, but she wasn't as good as her friend. She just does it when she feels like it. Everyone else was running around the room, passing materials to one another, but she was just sitting there. If anyone asked her for help, then she'd help. But she wasn't the type to approach people on her own.

Suddenly, a shadow was cast over the drawing. Mashumaro blinked in confusion and looked to her side. There was a girl with blonde hair tied into a bun, leaning down to watch her draw. The girl was wearing glasses and her eyes were a pretty shade of green. Mashumaro felt stupid for not realizing that she had a foreign classmate. To think that they were in the same room for weeks now. "Wow! That's so cute!" The foreigner admired her simple drawing with twinkling eyes. Mashumaro thought to herself that her skill in making figures was not even half of Hirari's, so she just awkwardly nodded to the foreigner, not knowing how to respond. "Um… sorry, but… what was your name again?" She asked the blonde girl, a bit embarrassed and feeling stupid for not knowing. She never really talked to anyone inside the classroom, anyway. "I'm Theresa." The blonde told her. "Say… you seem to be free from responsibilities as of now… do you want to help me with my assigned task? We're just going to search for the horoscope parts from newspapers, old and new."

Mashumaro's eyes shone with tears. A flattered blush gave color to her pale cheeks. It was the first time someone in class actually decided to ask her for help. And for a fun job, too! Horoscopes always fascinated Mashumaro, but she doesn't rely on them. She just finds it fun to read them. She was also a proud Aquarius. "O-Okay!" She agreed, putting her most determined face on. She finally found something to do.

"Ishikawa! Someone from Class 1 wants to see you!" A classmate called. Hirari, who was busy trying to draw something for the booth, faced the door and saw Hinata waving at her. A sweat drop fell from her head, deliberating about what the volleyball club wants now. She looked around; searching for Mashumaro but the girl was nowhere to be found. "Ishikawa!" Hinata clasped his hand right in front of his face. "If you're not busy, is it okay if you drop by the vending machine near the courtyard? I-I just need your help with something, you know… for the cultural festival?" Hinata's eyes were looking around, refusing to look at the girl who was just eyeing him suspiciously.

Hirari had always been the paranoid type, and she was reluctant about this. "But I'm figuring out how to draw something, like… yeah." One thing's for sure – both Hirari and Hinata were bad at making up excuses. Unfortunately for a girl who always agrees, Hinata was a persistent kind of person. "Please! I really need your help! I'm… uhh… GOING TO PRACTICE VOLLEYBALL BUT EVERYONE ELSE IS BUSY SO I DIDN'T KNOW ANYONE TO HELP ME AND THE GYM IS BEING DECORATED WITH CHAIRS AND TABLES AND SO I THOUGHT YOU WERE NICE AND THAT YOU ONLY HAVE ONE THING TO DRAW TODAY SO YOU'D HAVE TIME TO MAYBE HELP ME?" Hinata was terrible stringing up words when he's lying. Hirari didn't know what to say so she just thought of saying 'no' straightforwardly. But how? She rarely says 'no'. "Okay." She gave up. "YES! THANK YOU!" Hinata started shaking her hand quickly, and he dashed as fast as a cheetah along the corridor, screaming out Kageyama's name.

* * *

 _Two hours earlier…_

"I heard the gym's going to be decorated into a ballroom instead of a café." Sugawara said as they all rested after a morning jog. The gym was unavailable for them at the moment, so in the end, Ukai decided to schedule a morning jog so they could still warm up their bodies for the day before they head to the neighborhood association's practice court in the afternoon. "Oh? Like a kingdom gathering or something?" Azumane asked, stretching. "Yeah. Seems we're all required to attend since it's like a special activity for the sports teams. To show our 'classy' side or something instead of our usual jersey get-ups. But it's no ordinary ballroom, I think, since it's more like a gathering of sportsmen from our school and from other schools coming to visit for the festival." Daichi explained to both his companions. It was then when the second years have arrived at the resting place, overhearing the conversation. "A PARTY? LIKE THE KIND WHERE WE WEAR SOMETHING FORMAL? LIKE SUITS AND TUXEDOS?" Tanaka beamed up, surprised at the change of plans. "Damn it, I never look good in a suit!" He complained, clutching his head in frustration.

A hand comfortingly patted Tanaka's shoulder. "Not to worry, Ryu." Nishinoya looked proud as ever with one hand on his hip. "When we see Kiyoko in a dress, all will be well." An aura of light surrounded Nishinoya in Tanaka' view, and the bald second-year's eyes welled up with tears of happiness. "But will all of us fit in that gym? I mean, we have a lot of sports teams." Ennoshita asked. "Who knows? Maybe it's limited to only three or four teams. The other gyms are reserved for special events, too." Narita remarked. It was about time that the first-years arrived.

"ALL THE GYMS ARE RESERVED? So we're really going to practice in outside courts for two weeks?" Hinata reacted immediately. "Calm down. It's for a ballroom event." Sugawara went back to explaining everything to the first-years in a brief summary as they all drank water and prepared for their final run. After a short discussion, Yamaguchi said something that unintentionally made everyone's breathing stop. "They said we're supposed to bring a date as much as possible. Preferably from a different club so they could make use of the experience."

 _Chirp chirp chirp chirp._

"I DON'T HAVE A GIRLFRIEND YET!"

"WHY IS OUR SCHOOL SO CRUEL? HOW DARE THEY RUB OUR LOVELESS LIVES IN OUR FACES!"

"That's it. I'm transferring to Dateko. Goodbye."

"But… _why_?"

"Are _all_ sportsmen _required_ to have a love life?"

"Our Dean must be a fan of the type of shoujo manga where the MVP falls for an ordinary girl."

"D-Don't talk about the Dean like that! It's weird!"

Chaos ensued. "HEY! STOP SHOUTING! It's no big deal! Just waltz in the gym without a date. What's the big deal of going without a date, anyway?" Daichi scolded everyone to silence them. Instead of powering them up, he ended up demoralizing them. Except for the first-years who were more innocent than they look. "D-Daichi… you make sound like no one will like us for the rest of our lives…" Azumane sulked, counting the number of times a girl has run away from him even though he hasn't said anything yet. Tanaka was aggressively biting all his fingernails, since he only likes one girl and he also likes it when that said girl ignores him so it's impossible. Nishinoya, too, was staring blankly at the grasshopper jumping on the grass. "Don't worry about it, you guys." Sugawara said, like the beacon of hope he usually is. "It's still our choice, so we can still go as a whole team." His words felt like the sun's rays casting upon the dejected volleyball club members.

"Well, unless the teams from other schools come with their own dates." His last sentence immediately erased the ray of hope from his previous one. "But… Yamaguchi said that the reason why we're going to bring a date is because of the experience, right? Isn't the Media Club the only club in the school which would make the most use out of that experience since it's a special event that needs attention?" Hinata suddenly said, making everyone else glance in his direction. "I'm surprised you were able to deduce that despite having a small enough brain for a small body." Tsukishima sniggered, and Hinata just glared at him. He then noticed Kageyama, who was the only one who was too innocent to know what's going on and why the people are freaking out over 'dates'. "Why don't you ask Ishikawa out, by the way?"

Everyone felt lightning strike at them when Hinata was bold enough to say something like that. Kageyama, on the other hand, blushed a deep shade of crimson. He growled at Hinata, sending him a death glare. "Why me!?" He yelled. Hinata glared back at him. "Because you were smiling like a creepy old man at her drawing during yesterday's practice! Geez, _anybody_ could tell you lik—" Before Hinata could say something 'indecent', Kageyama covered his mouth with a towel.

"I AGREE WITH HINATA! AT LEAST ONE OR TWO OF US SHOULD GET A DATE OR WE WOULD ALL LOOK LIKE SORE LOSERS IN THAT EVENT!" Tanaka pumped his fists in the air. "Nice thinking, Ryu! Since Kageyama is known around the school for being the 'talented new setter', if he gets a date, our club won't look like it's made up of spineless men who can't even ask girl out!" Nishinoya followed, accidentally demoralizing them a bit more. Daichi smacked both their heads. "Stop that! Let's continue our run! We, third-years, are going first! Start!" Daichi and Sugawara started running. "Good luck on asking her, Kageyama!" Azumane said before following after.

The second-years all lined up, preparing to run. Nishinoya looked behind him to see Kageyama pressing a towel to Hinata's face. When their eyes met, the libero gave him a thumbs-up. "Alright! Let's roll!" Nishinoya then signaled for them to start running. "We're going on ahead, King." Tsukishima told the oddball duo as he ran after the second-years did long with Yamaguchi. When everyone was finally gone, Hinata was finally able to breathe. "What's with you? You're really creepy!" He told Kageyama. "WHAT!?" The setter angrily replied. Hinata sighed, slouching a bit. "I could tell you want to ask her out, though." The shorter boy accused. Kageyama paused, but he started jogging away, ignoring Hinata. "Hey! Wait!" Hinata jogged after him, trying to catch up with his speed. "You're really quiet when it's Ishikawa we're talking about."

Kageyama slowed his pace. He didn't realize that. "I could tell you're thinking about something deeper about her and stuff." Hinata continued on. Kageyama looked so annoyed right now; it was a struggle not to choke Hinata at the moment. "But there's nothing wrong with asking her out, right? You want her to like volleyball, right? The ballroom event's going to be filled with sportsmen and volleyball players especially!" Hinata was being so irritating, but Kageyama knew that there was no denial in his words. "It's her choice if she wants to come." The setter finally answered as he started to build up speed. Hinata's face creased. "But she _can't_ come if _no one_ asks her out!" He reasoned out, knowing that Kageyama usually gives in after a few arguments here and there. Unfortunately, it wasn't an argument, since Kageyama wasn't responding well at all. "Fine, I'll ask her out, then." Hinata ended.

Unexpectedly, Kageyama stopped in his tracks and Hinata followed suit. There was a moment of silence between them before Kageyama snapped his head at Hinata, slightly scaring the shorter boy. "You like her?" Kageyama asked him. Hinata frowned at the baseless question. "I like her as a person, and she draws awesomely! Although she's shy and easily-frightened, she's cool! She can capture a lot of moments with her video camera and she's also our mascot, too. I like her as a person, but not in _that way._ Also, what's so wrong about asking her out? Plus, why'd you stop running when I told you I'd ask her out?" He told Kageyama, who just looked away and continued on his jog. Hinata sighed, giving up on the round-a-bout conversation. After a while, they picked up pace and they ended up racing each other like they usually do.

They both started screaming as they ran, catching up to everyone and eventually outrunning them. "ASK HER OUT, KAGEYAMA!" Hinata said in the midst of their intense race. Kageyama, because of the pressure, finally answered. "I DON'T KNOW HOW, DUMBASS!" He yelled back.

"THEN I'LL HELP YOU!"

* * *

Hirari was about to bring out her camera to record first what's outside but then she remembered that it wouldn't help her go back to the real world if she couldn't let go of her 'camera' habit. She then stepped outside, the breeze kissing against her cheeks. She saw someone standing in front of the vending machine, looking frustrated. Her cheeks flushed as she looked around for Hinata but couldn't find the spiker. The only person in front of her was Kageyama, who was trying to burn the vending machine with his glare. She stepped backward slowly, pretending that she was never there in the first place, but she accidentally stepped on a can.

The sound distracted Kageyama from his inside war – choosing between a milk and yogurt drink – and he looked behind him to see a frozen Hirari posing like a tiptoeing fox from a certain Spanish children's cartoon. Hirari immediately stood up straight when their eyes met. Kageyama's eyes widened and he started sweating on the spot.

" _Hinata set us up! Dammit!"_

He thought that Hinata probably knew when he would pass by the vending machine to get his usual box of milk. Another inside war started within his brain. It wasn't an official date. He was just doing this so she could get a background of the volleyball players from other schools and it might even help her create a new scoop for their club. Then again, asking someone out isn't that hard. He opened his mouth, but nothing came out. Hirari was just staring at him, confused. She wondered if he was here because Hinata asked him to help with _something_ just like what the orange-haired boy did to her. Or if Hinata really _did_ set them up.

They just stood there, thinking about why they're there in the first place.

And it was awkward.

"Um…" They said in unison. "Oh, you go first." Hirari told him. "N-No, you go first." Kageyama motioned for her to speak. In the end, none of them said a word. It was definitely the Level 4 type of awkward. It was just then that Hirari noticed the bandages on Kageyama's arm. She recalled the wheelchair incident and blushed. She also felt guilty for his frequent toss misses on that same day because of his fresh injuries. "Sorry about that." Hirari was the first to speak, pointing at Kageyama's arms. The boy looked at his arms for a moment and then his gaze went back to her. "Yeah." He said, obviously not knowing how to respond to someone apologizing to him. He didn't realize that his answer was a slightly, just slightly, inappropriate response to an apology. "Actually, Hinata called me here but since he's nowhere to be found, I guess I'll just go. Ha… ha…" Hirari slowly took steps backward, only making the situation worse than it usually is. "Wait!" Kageyama called, making her freak out a bit. "I-I…" The boy stuttered. Asking someone out was supposed to be easy and he knew that. Or so he thought. He stood up straight and inhaled a large amount of air. "You?" Hirari asked, trying to help him out with whatever it is he's trying to say.

"… I like the weather today. It's nice."

Meanwhile, a certain short spiker was hiding in the bushes, smacking his face with his palm.

* * *

Tanaka's right eyebrow twitched at the same time Nishinoya's left one did. "You were with the girl for _five minutes_ and not a single invitation?" They finally said it. Kageyama gritted his teeth, his eyes almost glowing red when he faced Hinata. "Oi, Kageyama! You should be manlier!" Nishinoya bluntly told him, pounding on his chest proudly. "Asking someone out is easy! Just say, 'oh, I like you', then she says 'oh I like you too' and then you're going to be like 'oh let's go on a date'…" Tanaka's suggestion went on and on, but his words were entering Kageyama's right ear and going out at the left. "I had to think up of so many lies just to get her to come, too!" Hinata complained, messing up his hair. Tanaka was already making kissy-faces in the background; Nishinoya was laughing victoriously for no reason, while Hinata was whining about all his 'hard work'. It wasn't helping Kageyama at all.

"Okay! The event takes place at the last day of the cultural festival, which in turn, starts three days from now! We have to do something to ask someone out or we will all look like the wimpiest sports club in the school! The basketball team members have their own girlfriends, too!" Tanaka was biting on a towel angrily. "Hey, get going with the warm-ups!" Daichi scolded the idiots, glancing over to Shimizu and Yachi who just arrived at the place. "I brought the Media Club with me. They want to write about our practices near the mountains and sea." The bespectacled girl explained. The two first-years overheard what she said and they quickly looked up.

Hirari was already on the bench, sketching something on paper while Mashumaro was talking to a new girl. "Is that the Media Club's president?" Daichi asked Shimizu. She nodded and proceeded to go back to the bench. "Kageyama! She's over there! Go approach her!" Hinata whispered, nudging Kageyama. The latter only stood rooted to his spot, glancing at the bench every now and then, silently thinking to himself.

"They look promising." Saruhiko nodded in approval, while taking pictures of the scene. "It was a good choice to assign you here. You've improved drastically ever since you were exposed to this club. They must be… really in touch with the world." She struggled to lessen the impact of her words while talking to Mashumaro. The writer was just smiling happily while watching the boys start their warm-up. For some reason, Hinata and Kageyama were bickering during the exercise. She didn't pay attention to what Saruhiko was saying anymore, because she was thoughtfully watching Hinata push Kageyama towards the bench despite the setter's objections.

Kageyama hesitantly stepped towards Hirari, with Hinata behind him. Hirari looked up in alarm, and found Kageyama staring hard at her. "Hey." He said. "Hi." She greeted back. Kageyama looked down at his feet, not wanting to say another word. Hinata decided to take matters in his own hands and ask. "Hey, what is that you're drawing, Ishikawa?" Upon hearing the question, Hirari bit her tongue and looked down at the paper. She was too embarrassed to say that she was trying to draw intertwined hands for the match-making part of their classroom booth and she had no references so she couldn't finish it. "Oh! Those are hands, right? But something seems off… hey, Kageyama, give her your hand!"

Hinata forced him by lifting his arm up. Kageyama grabbed Hinata's face with the hand that was just lifted, an aura of pure evil encircling the setter's body. "Y-You're going to tear off my face! I was just trying to make you help her out! Don't you want to make things easier for her?" Hinata was sputtering out reasons. Hirari held out her hands, thinking of ways to deny the statement. Unfortunately for her, Kageyama gave in to Hinata's words and he held out his hand to her. Hirari's trembling fingers moved towards his, since she knew there was no way to refuse their help now. If she ever did, she was scared that Kageyama might hate her and kill her for humiliating him by turning down his _kind_ offer.

His hands were rough and calloused, but they were large enough to cover hers. Her fingers looked like a baby's fingers when intertwined with his. Hinata moved away quietly while whistling, pretending he wasn't there when it happened before he ran back to court.

She was only doing this for the reference, but Hirari couldn't take in how their hands looked like. Every single time she looked at their hands, her mind ends up becoming blank. Kageyama, on the other hand, innocently thought there was nothing wrong with just holding hands, anyway. He remained calm, although he was still forgetting one thing – asking the girl out. There was no malice, but he still found it hard. He looked around him and _everyone_ from the volleyball club was staring at him, awaiting his move. He swallowed, but his throat was still dry.

There wasn't any malice so he shouldn't be nervous, right? He's only doing this because he knew that the Media Club would benefit if someone from them went to the event, right? It's also going to benefit the team, right?

"I-Ishikawa." He started.

Great. Hirari couldn't even look at their hands, so how was she going to look at his face? She robotically looked up, staring at the bridge of his nose instead of his eyes. "Yeah?"

 _Doki. Doki. Doki._

" _Damn it, heartbeat."_ Kageyama clicked his tongue.

" _This is not a drill. I repeat, this is not a drill."_ Hirari was inwardly sounding off the alarm system in her body.

"Ishikawa… do you need a new pencil?"

The volleyball members groaned in unison upon witnessing Kageyama's failure. Meanwhile, Hirari was as confused as ever, because the pencil she was using is working just fine.

On another part of the court, Mashumaro was so immersed in the happenings, that she didn't hear Saruhiko telling her about "a tall blonde guy with glasses who was stealing glances at you from across the court."

* * *

 _8 days left before the big event._


	13. Chapter 13 Teach Me How To Ask A Girl

_Thursday._

"I MADE A NEW FRIEND YESTERDAY! BE PROUD OF ME!" Mashumaro was so enthusiastic and elated that it seemed like a rare sight, since the girl was just a smiling freak in class but she never became _this_ excited about something. Making a new friend was already considered a huge achievement for her, since she sucks terribly at socializing. Hirari clapped her hands and they both jumped like jellybeans, forgetting that they are still in the classroom and they just look weirder than ever. "I'M SO PROUD OF YOU! YOU TALKED TO SOMEONE!" The ponytail girl beamed. "So what's her name?" Their voices were so loud, that everyone either decided to ignore them or to listen on to whatever strange alien things they were talking about.

Mashumaro could barely contain her smile and her face was glowing because of the pink tinge on her cheeks. "Theresa! Wait… do you _have_ to know her name?" Mashumaro's face was back to normal. Hirari frowned. "Well… names are important, you know. You're the only person I know who keeps forgetting people's names, so you won't understand." She slightly teased. "W-What! No! I mean… I thought you were going to judge her simple name since you like ultra-unique medieval names like 'Yelena' and, um… 'Leia'!" Mashumaro countered. Most of the class were already gawking at them, since it's been a long time since they talked about something amusing and pointless at the same time.

"N-No, I didn't mean—"

"Okay, fine, Hirari. Let's give her a more creative nickname. Theresa… Eresa… Elesa… ELSA?"

"Wait, no, dude!"

"Okay! What about Terrace?"

"DUDE HAHAHAHAHA YOU JACKASS."

"Terrace… Terrace… BALCONY, THEN? And I am not a jackass!"

"YOU ARE! YOU JUST CALLED YOUR NEW FRIEND, 'BALCONY'! YOU KEEP COMPLAINING WHY YOU CAN'T MAKE ANY NEW FRIENDS… THERE'S YOUR ANSWER!"

"OH MY GOSH. YOU DID NOT JUST—"

"I DID."

Yamaguchi sweat-dropped. Tsukishima prevented a snort, since he can't help but think that the conversation was _actually_ funny even though it sounded like it was Hinata and Kageyama arguing. The rest of the class were either laughing, glaring, or just working on the class booth. In the end, the two girls went outside the room, and Mashumaro waved at Theresa who was just going inside. Hirari subtly nudged her friend on the arm, reminding her of the 'balcony' conversation. Mashumaro ignored her and just greeted Theresa using her given name. When they finally reached the Media Club room, it was a surprise that there was no one there. Hirari placed her bag on the table and took out a bunch of clothes.

"I'm all sweaty." She told Mashumaro.

* * *

 _Meanwhile, outside the Media clubroom…_

Four boys were pressing their ears against the door of the room, concentrating hard. "… Do you hear her voice?" Tanaka whispered as quietly as he can. "Yes! I do! She's inside! What did she say? ' _Mimes are called Betty?'_ " Hinata's face lightened up as he pressed his ear against the door harder. "Be quiet, you guys! She'll hear us!" Nishinoya scolded them. Kageyama was just awkwardly trying to copy what they're doing even though it was only because he wanted to know if this counted as 'improving his social skills with his teammates'. "Kageyama! Get yourself ready! She's going to come out soon!" Tanaka pushed Kageyama away from the door before going back to his eavesdropping. Kageyama blinked. "How'd you know?"

"Didn't you hear what she just said? _'I'll stall the yeti'_!" Tanaka informed him. "Sorry, but, what does a yeti got to do with her coming out from the room soon?" Kageyama asked again, tilting his head slightly to the side. "The word 'yeti' must be a codename for a tall person! Like Tsukishima!" Hinata suggested. "No, Ryu! Shoyo! I think she said, ' _My oddball spaghetti'_!" Nishinoya disagreed with the previous statement. The boys were so busy arguing over what a certain someone said that they didn't get a chance to react when the door suddenly opened from the inside.

The idiot trio fell down to the floor simultaneously. _"Shit."_ Kageyama's mind went blank for a second and he bowed down out of panic. _"What are the words? What are the words, dammit!?"_

"I-Ishikawa! P-Please go out with m—oh?" Kageyama looked up just in time.

The three boys who fell down opened their eyes and saw a pair of feet in front of them. They slowly moved their heads to face upward and saw a girl staring at all of them, surprised and speechless. They all jumped quickly and hid behind Kageyama. "K-Kaji! Sorry!" Hinata was the first to speak up. One of Mashumaro's eyes narrowed and she shook her head gently, still trying to comprehend what had just happened and why on Earth were the three boys pressing their heads against the door. "If you're looking for Hirari," She pointed her thumb backwards. "She went out the other door connected to the next hallway. It's a faster way to the girls' rest room." She told them. The three boys behind Kageyama whistled, pretending to be guiltless. All of the sudden, Nishinoya sped to the hallway along with Tanaka, leaving Kageyama and Hinata to deal with the issue. "Good luck, freshmen!" Tanaka shouted as they ran away.

A slightly mischievous grin and aura emanated from the girl. "… Did I just hear that right? You were going to ask my friend out, Kageyama Tobio?" She crossed her arms against her chest arrogantly. Kageyama's frustrated scowl was back on his face, while Hinata was slapping his own cheeks. There was no escape route for them now. There was a very eerie silence that spelled 'doom' for Kageyama. He was caught in the act. "K-Kaji!" Hinata suddenly kneeled down and pressed his forehead on the floor. The girl flinched at the sight. "Please don't tell Ishikawa! Please!" Hinata sat upright and tugged on her sleeves, begging. "O-Oi! Stop that!" Kageyama yelled. "E-Eh? Wait! I'm—I'm not going to!" Mashumaro's words made the oddball duo freeze on the spot.

"You…"

"…won't?"

Mashumaro laughed. "Nah. I won't. It's not my job to ask my friend out." She told them. Kageyama was finally able to breathe and forget about his humiliation and Hinata let out a relieved sigh. "She's going to freak out when you really get to ask her out, though." Her words sunk deep into Kageyama's morale, burning it down completely. "Um, you see, Kaji… I thought it would be nice if at least one of us brings a date to the event on the last day of the festival… But Kageyama's being such a wuss about it." Hinata tried explaining further, slightly hoping that the best friend of their target would help. Unfortunately, Mashumaro obviously did not want to control Hirari's life.

She closed the door of the clubroom as she stepped outside. "I'm not saying you shouldn't, though. You're the guy. It's up to you, Kageyama. Plus," She looked at the taller boy devilishly, instantly giving Kageyama a bad feeling. "I get to see how a talented sportsman overcomes the anxiety of dates. You were single since birth, right? Not too good with women, I see." Mashumaro was making fun of him now, shocking both of them. They had no idea that the rumors about the Media Club knowing _every detail_ are true! Not to mention, they didn't know that Kaji Mashumaro had a sadistic side. "Do you even like her more than just someone you happened to meet as a crow mascot?" She suddenly stopped laughing, her face turning serious.

Kageyama did not say anything. He didn't even change the expression on his face. Hinata could see through him well, though, as the shorter boy watched the setter's hands ball into fists. Without waiting for his answer, Mashumaro shrugged her shoulders. "I don't think you need to like someone to ask them out. I think asking someone out is kind of like just getting to know the person. There's no harm done in that, right?" She finally let out words of encouragement, even though she knew Hirari was going to kill her if the word spread out that the ultimate best friend encouraged a boy to ask her out. Kageyama's eyes widened and his shoulders relaxed from their tense state. "Yeah, yeah! Ask her out, Kageyama! Maybe then you can finally answer that question!" Hinata followed, persuading Kageyama further.

Kageyama looked at both of them, his face still normal. His lips curved and he breathed in. "Yeah."

* * *

 _Saturday._

Tsukishima stared at the words, focused on reading the book he just managed to bring all for one reason – he didn't want to spend the rest of the day, helping his class do stuff that 'only tall guys can do'. In the end, he was stuck in the clubroom. The dumb antics he had dealt with since his birth has been endured, so he thought hanging out with the other people in the clubroom shouldn't be a problem. Unfortunately, except for Yamaguchi, the four other boys inside the room are not quite affected by this thing called 'logic'.

"Okay! Let's start the strategy meeting!" Nishinoya hits a paper fan on the shelves to capture everyone else's attention.

"Yay!" Hinata pumped both fists up in the air in a 'banzai' fashion.

"Why here?" Kageyama asked, slightly complaining as he obviously shot a glare at Tsukishima. He sat on the floor with his legs crossed.

The blonde's tongue clicked. He had been careless. He was peacefully minding his own business in the clubroom with Yamaguchi, reading biology books or doing things that aren't related to volleyball at the moment. It just so happened that Tanaka went in, looking completely harmless and trustworthy – although those words do not fit him at all – that Tsukishima didn't mind it when the bald guy asked him if it was okay for him to hang out there, too. Unfortunately, three other people came barging in uninvited, destroying the peace and quiet.

"Tsukishima's completely innocent! He's not going to ruin the plan even if he hears it!" Nishinoya assured them, slapping the paper fan harder on the shelves.

The others looked at him with disbelieving eyes, unsure of whether to believe it or not. 'Innocent' is not a word to describe the middle blocker.

Even if Tsukishima was a total jerk, he didn't care about retorting this time. He was tired from all the rushed work his classmates made him do, especially that it's the last day of the week and their last chance to finish all preparations for Monday. All he wanted was to read quietly.

Without saying a word, Tsukishima pressed his headphones to his ears and disappeared into his music. He wondered if there was someplace else he could read _alone_.

"You! You can't ask Kiyoko out! I can't, too!" Nishinoya pointed at Tanaka with the paper fan. "Hinata's not interested in anyone, although he wouldn't have a problem asking someone out! He's out of the picture!" The paper fan was pointed at Hinata. Yamaguchi tapped a finger on Tsukishima's shoulder. The blonde shifted his gaze from the book to Yamaguchi while taking off his headphones. "You! Yamaguchi! What's your love problem?" Now all attention was on Yamaguchi before he could even say something to Tsukishima. "U-Um, every time a girl talks to me, they always want to talk about Tsuki…?" He said, shy and unsure. They all blinked.

"… That beanpole has fans?" Kageyama suddenly asked. The three other idiots jumped at Tsukishima, their faces aiming to intimidate him. "What's that, you bastard? You tend to steal all the attention, huh? Tanaka accused. "Tsukishima! Don't steal the girls from your best friend!" Nishinoya. "Right, right!" Hinata.

"W-Wait! That's not it! Tsuki's not really talking to any of those girls. The only girl he interacted with the most is Kaji, I think." Yamaguchi tried to defend the situation but he ended up earning a glare from Tsukishima. "Oh! Good! He's close to the ultimate best friend!" Nishinoya waved the paper fan up, hatching up a plan. "I don't think Kaji would appreciate being nicknamed 'the ultimate best friend', though." Kageyama commented, eating curry bread he bought earlier. "Then let's just call her 'Tsukishima's girlfriend'!" Tanaka suggested. "Nah, I can't even imagine Tsukishima getting a girlfriend." Nishinoya told them.

Tsukishima closed the book loudly and in a rapid motion, while dangerously glaring at all of them.

"No offense, man." Nishinoya dropped the paper fan and crossed his arms against his chest proudly. "But I think you probably suck at love. Even badder than Kageyama." Tsukishima was silently wondering why Nishinoya was talking like Bokuto from Fukurodani High. He even decided to ignore the grammatical error. He closed his eyes and stood up, opening the door. Unfortunately, his action was misunderstood by Nishinoya. "Already? We know you want to get a girlfriend fast, but we have to strategize first!"

Tsukishima looked back at them, looking more irritated than before. He smirked. "I don't think I'd have a problem getting a girlfriend. It's the King you should worry about. Or if you want, I could ask one of the girls to be the King's date. They'd surely agree if it was me who asked, right?" He told them, and he ended up pissing everyone off. "You cocky shit!" Tanaka cursed at him.

"I'm pretty sure Kaji will decline even if you asked, though." Nishinoya wasn't even joking nor was he yelling when he said that, but that line struck a nasty chord in Tsukishima's throat as he accidentally choked on his own saliva. "What do you mean, Noya-san?" Tanaka asked the libero. Nishinoya's hand made its way to his chin while his other hand placed itself on his hip. Anyone would think that the 'thinking pose' doesn't suit Nishinoya at all. "Well… can't you tell she's an introvert? She barely approaches us during practices."

Everyone else was secretly wondering how Nishinoya was able to come up with something so observant and logical.

"And it's a shame since Tsukishima's already bad at love. If you add up the fact that Kaji doesn't seem to like being around crowds of people, then it's almost close to impossible that she'd say yes, even to Tsukishima. The ultimate best friend probably doesn't need man to live her life." Nishinoya ended his extremely smart statement. They were even more surprised that the libero was able to deduce that than the fact that there was a girl who hardly cared about whether the tall and hot blondie that is Tsukishima Kei would ask her out or not.

Provoking Tsukishima Kei was easier than provoking Kageyama Tobio. Without any counter-statement, the blonde closed the door and went back to his seat, making Yamaguchi rather confused at his change of mind. Nishinoya and Tanaka gave each other a high-five for successfully dragging Tsukishima into the plan. "Okay! Here's the plan!"

* * *

 _Sunday._

It was supposedly their rest day. For some reason yesterday, Yamaguchi decided to help out with the plan and randomly approached Mashumaro while the girl was leaning on the table where the glass globe was on, asleep. It's actually a surprise that she can sleep anywhere if she just wanted to. Unfortunately, when Yamaguchi woke her up, she was beyond infuriated. They had no idea that Hirari is the only person capable of disturbing her slumber without angering her. After a while, she calmed down and Yamaguchi just _had_ to ask what they usually did on a Sunday to which she answered "I play video games while Hirari picks up books from the public library so she could study."

Tsukishima was only here because he did not want Yamaguchi to get caught by the police, he did not want to be called 'a sucker in love', and he was the only sane person in the group of first-years at the moment. Unfortunately, when Tanaka and Nishinoya found out that at least _one_ responsible person was going to accompany Hinata and Kageyama for mission number one, they ended up ditching them, saying that if anything happens, Tsukishima will be responsible.

It's not like the blonde had a choice. Yamaguchi had been corrupted with the 'KageHira' and 'TsukiMaro' ships, so Tsukishima was the _only_ one responsible enough right here; right now. He was just standing there, staring at the three dorks crouching under him. "Hey, Tsukishima! Crouch down! She'll see you!" Hinata scolded him as he peeked into the glass windows of the library. Tsukishima's eye twitched. He kneeled down, since they were already catching too much attention from the passers-by and he did not want his face to be remembered. He peered into the window and saw Ishikawa picking up books from the shelves and setting them down on a table. Then she took a notebook from her bag and started writing notes.

"You're going to get in there and ask her out, okay?" Yamaguchi instructed Kageyama. "Let's all encourage Kageyama! All together now!" Hinata readied his knuckles. With one swift movement, the three first-years raised their knuckles up in the air and shouted something inaudible even for Tsukishima's ears. Their voices and timing were out of sync and their 'blending' sounded awful. He wondered how many more minutes until they get arrested for causing noise beside a public library. "W-Why does it have to be me and why today during our rest day?" Kageyama complained.

"Your problem with girls is easier to fix than Tsukishima's!" Hinata answered confidently, and Tsukishima's unbelievable amount of self-control prevented him from shoving the spiker's face through the window. "T-Tsuki's problem is not _that_ hard to fix! Right, Tsuki?" Yamaguchi, again, tried defending the bespectacled young man, but Tsukishima's answer was always the same. "Shut up, Yamaguchi."

Hinata and Yamaguchi looked at Kageyama from head to toe as they all stood up. "You're seriously going to ask a girl out in that get-up?" Hinata asked, and although he was serious, it pissed off Kageyama. "What's wrong with the way I dress!?" Kageyama retorted. His three companions stared at him blankly. He only had a plain grey v-neck shirt on and khaki shorts. Then they all looked through the window once again and saw Hirari wearing a jacket over a tank top and a pleated skirt. "You two should get matchy-matchy!" Hinata suggested, his eyes scanning both Yamaguchi and Tsukishima. "Tsukishima, give your jacket to Kageyama."

Tsukishima gave them a 'you've-got-to-be-kidding-me' look.

In the end, they forcefully made Kageyama wear Tsukishima's jacket even though Kageyama's face was so close to vomiting over the fact that he needed the giant's clothes just to ask a girl out. He wanted to murder Hinata right there. Before he could even take a step, Yamaguchi pushed him towards the door to the library. "H-Hey! Wait! Stop that!" He growled at the freckled boy. "Just get it over with!" Yamaguchi was brave enough to push Kageyama into the library, making him fall to the floor with a loud thud. Hirari looked up to see where the sound came from, but she found no one.

Tsukishima watched in horror as Kageyama put the librarian in a headlock when she approached him and covered her mouth with his other hand as he kneeled on the other side of the table Hirari was in. The librarian was supposed to scold him, but he acted on instinct before she could even say anything. Tsukishima was now dead-sure that the police will be coming any minute now. Charges against them? Stalking, harassment, and attempted murder.

When Kageyama realized that it wasn't Hinata who approached him, he quickly let go and crawled as fast as he can to the direction of the shelves. The angry librarian breathed in and out, before standing up and stomping after Kageyama. Hirari, again, looked up from her notebook with a 'wtf' expression on her face when she noticed the librarian acting weird. First, she saw the librarian going towards the door to check who just came in and falling on the floor for an unknown reason to her. Next, the angry librarian seemed to be blaming _something_ for her fall. Deciding that it was probably just some anger management issues, the girl went back to her notes.

Meanwhile, Kageyama hid behind a shelf, panting. His hand clutched his chest and he tried to regain his composure. He looked at the window where the three other dorks were watching. Tsukishima was trying to keep calm but he was actually _dying_ to leave now. Yamaguchi was clenching his fists in anticipation while Hinata was pointing to somewhere inside the library, probably where Hirari was sitting. Kageyama removed a book from the two-way shelf so he could catch a glimpse of Hirari on the other side.

"Hey! What do you think you're doing, young man!?" The librarian's voice startled Kageyama out of his wits and he accidentally leaned over to the shelf, causing the books to start falling down towards Hirari. Hinata's hands pulled on his hair while Yamaguchi's hands covered his face, although he could still see through the spaces between his fingers. Tsukishima adjusted his glasses, subtly looking around to see how many people have stopped to watch and listen to Yamaguchi's and Hinata's constant screaming.

Hirari looked up just in time. "…GAK!?" Her scream was cut short when her throat seemed to stop the sound from coming out. She stood up and leaned backward on the table accidentally, pushing it from its place. The books all fell in front of her, much to her delight. Until one book from the top shelf made a jackpot on her head and she clutched her head in pain.

Before Hirari could see him, Kageyama jumped up and out the library. In the end, the police came, after all.

They spent the rest of the day in their own homes because they got grounded.

* * *

 _Monday._

It was the most-awaited cultural festival. The students were all busy, welcoming visitors and guarding their booths. Food stalls lined up the entrance to the school and souvenirs were passed around. Flyers and invitations flew over the audience as some grabbed the papers to read what else is in the school. The festive gathering was lively, and the sun shone its rays upon the soil, making flowers bloom. The courtyard was decorated with a stage where a concert is to be held by the music club in the afternoon. The gyms were closed, reserved for a special event at the end of the week. Class representatives were running here and there, accommodating the guests interested in entering their classroom to see what has been prepared inside.

Everyone was busy. Well, reviewing the plan 'Operation: Asking A Girl Out' counts as 'busy'. They were back in their 'secret base' – the clubroom.

"Okay, it wasn't really a good plan to ask a girl out in a public library." Yamaguchi thought out loud. Kageyama stood up and swiftly slashed his hand on the air in front of him. "I am _not_ doing that again! I was stuck in my room the whole day, and my mother even confiscated my ball so I couldn't practice!" He complained, eyeing Hinata. "W-Why is it that _I'm_ the one who gets all the blame here?" Hinata countered, backing away to the wall. Tsukishima drank from his can of soda, listening on to their rambling. He hoped that they would just give up. He had to admit, though, that getting grounded on a Sunday was not what he planned for.

"Look, King," Tsukishima started. "None of that would have happened if you just went straight to her and asked. Technically, it's _your_ fault." He turned the tables around, placing all the blame on Kageyama instead of Hinata. "What'd you say!?" Kageyama hissed. "So you're saying that I'm the one who tore your jacket when it was forced upon me!?"

Yamaguchi gulped. "… I told you not to remind Tsuki…"

A dent ran along the sides of Tsukishima's soda can.

* * *

"Let's go in there! It'll be fun, you know!" Hirari was dragging Mashumaro forcefully into Class 3. Mashumaro, looking more annoyed than thrilled, was trying to pull her arm out of Hirari's grasp. "N-No! That's a horror house! You'll only scream into my ears as soon as we get inside even though nothing's happening!" She successfully managed to pull her arm away, but Hirari ended up grabbing both of them quickly. "You were the one screaming in the 4D roller coaster trip to the underworld when we were in middle school, Maro!"

Meanwhile, a bunch of people wearing horrible ghost costumes were standing by the doorway, blending in with the students of Class 3 welcoming the visitors. Their costumes were horrible in a way that it didn't look scary. It looked like they were just people draping white blankets over their bodies and poked holes on it so they could still see. Tsukishima was forced to wear the same thing but in exchange, Hinata and Yamaguchi promised to fix the damage on his jacket if he still went along with the plan. He did it for the jacket, but not willingly. His mother was going to kill him if she found it in his dresser before they could even fix it so he had no choice once again but to agree on the condition.

"Hey! They're going in!" Hinata's muffled voice inside the blanket still managed to reach his companions' ears.

As Hirari and Mashumaro passed by the suspicious ghosts, Mashumaro suddenly got a chill running down her spine as she felt something strange. Hirari had it worse, since the girl has natural paranoia over her surroundings. She looked at the ghosts, noticing that they flinched when she did. "… Maro… it feels as if something's watching us." She whispered. "You're just overthinking. There can't be anything here but artificial horrors… right?" Mashumaro tried to assure Hirari, but she failed to assure herself. In the end, they still went inside. As soon as all the slots were taken, the lights went out. The game of terror was starting.

Mashumaro blinked but they were already in utter darkness. She raised her hands, trying to find Hirari.

Hirari just stood rooted on her spot, unable to move. She was afraid of the dark, and Mashumaro was right. She'll start screaming soon if the lights don't go on within five minutes. No, two minutes. She's _that_ afraid of the dark.

The boys were smart enough to cast a dim light to where they were standing. Yamaguchi put a cone around the flashlight so the light wouldn't spread and wouldn't ruin the horror game. "Go, Tsukishima!" Hinata pushed Tsukishima towards where the girl was. Tsukishima sighed, feeling defeated, as he took off his ghost costume and slowly went towards where Mashumaro was. "Hira—mmpf!" Mashumaro was about to call her friend, but a hand quickly covered her mouth and she felt sheets covered her entire body. She started kicking and squirming, accidentally hitting Tsukishima's jaw. "Ngh!" He grunted in pain and his glasses fell from his face. He could barely see anything now.

Out of frustration, he enveloped the girl with his long arms, stopping her from moving around too much. "HIRARI! HIRARIIII!" The girl let out an ear-piercing scream. The other people who were inside the horror house started panicking when they heard the scream. At the same time, several scary 'apparitions' revealed themselves in front of the students, filling the entire room with nothing but echoing screams and cries. Hirari started to tear up as she kept on bumping into people who seem to be running from something.

Someone accidentally hit the flashlight on Yamaguchi and Hinata's area. The light disappeared and both boys stood up in panic, unintentionally bumping their heads against each other as they ran on opposite directions. "W-Where's Kageyama?" Yamaguchi took out his costume. "I don't know! I told him to go chase after Ishikawa! I can't see a thing!" Hinata answered.

Meanwhile, Hirari was already running away from something that's been chasing her. "KYAAAAA!" Her eyes were already dropping water. It was not long after that she bumped into two certain people and the three of them fell to the floor altogether. Yamaguchi and Hinata looked up and saw an extremely scary monster – the one who has been chasing after Hirari. The creature had a Cheshire set of teeth and his eyes were really sharp and terrifying. "AAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" The three screamed in unison.

Because of the uncontrollable chaos, the class representative decided to end the game early and turned the lights on. Everyone was able to regain their composure fast – except for Hinata, Hirari, and Yamaguchi. The three were cowering in fear. Hinata and Yamaguchi were both hugging each other while Hirari was leaning on the wall, her soul seeping away from her body. When they both looked up, Kageyama was just staring down at them with his usual frown.

"… DON'T SCARE US LIKE THAT, KAGEYAMA! I ALMOST DIED!"

"HA!? YOU TOLD ME TO CHASE AFTER—"

"NOT IN THAT KIND OF WAY!"

On the other hand, something freaky was moving underneath a white blanket. When someone got the courage to finally lift it up, a more humiliating event was revealed.

Mashumaro had her left arm around Tsukishima's neck and her right leg was stuck under Tsukishima's left one. Her right hand was pushing his body away from hers, but his right hand was on the floor, trying to search for his glasses. They were _completely_ entangled and everyone in the room stared in shock.

"GET A ROOM!" Someone from the crowd yelled.

Mashumaro's face darkened with a deep shade of red and she struggled to remove her leg under Tsukishima's. They ended up scrambling on the floor, and Tsukishima _finally_ found his glasses. They both stood up, pretending that nothing happened. Mashumaro was awkwardly humming a song off-tune, while Tsukishima was wiping his glasses with his shirt. He looked at the crowd with a strong glare. "To whoever told us to get a room… technically, this _is_ a room. Don't be stupid." He finally retorted as he proceeded to walk out of the classroom, only to be greeted by the Dean, who obviously heard about what happened.

They were in trouble once again.

* * *

 _Wednesday._

Tsukishima was now pressing an ice pack against his head. It's been two days since the horror house event, and he could never forget that the real _horror_ happened ironically when the lights turned on. Kageyama was tossing a ball in the air as he lied down on the floor of the clubroom. "The Dean really got us bad, huh?" Yamaguchi broke the silence. The Dean told Daichi about what happened in the horror house and how students from other classes decided to interfere with the booth of Class 3. In the end, they were all punished by an angry captain. Their bodies hurt like hell as of now.

"Okay, for Plan C, we—"

" _No_."

Both Tsukishima and Kageyama cut Hinata off before he could start another scheme. "But Kageyama still has to ask the girl out. And it's already Wednesday!" Yamaguchi reasoned out with his unwavering will. Kageyama was sure that if the next plan fails yet again, he will lose the tiny bit of pride left within his body. As for Tsukishima, it was the _first_ time he got in trouble with the Dean and he has no plans to repeat that again. If he gets kicked out of the college preparatory class, he swears he would—

"Fine. I'll just ask both Kaji and Ishikawa to be my dates." Hinata said.

Tsukishima threw the ice bag and Kageyama threw the ball. Both hit Hinata's face.

* * *

 _1 day left before the big event._


	14. Chapter 14 Operation Success

**OMG I SAW A REVIEW IN MY STORY AND IT MADE ME SO HAPPY. TO THINK SOMEONE READ MY OTHER FIC ABOUT MY OC'S AND IS STILL READING THIS NEW ONE RIGHT HERE. _OMGGGGGGG_**

 **This one is completely different from It's Okay To Be Selfish(my first Haikyuu fic). I just used the same OCs because, well, they're fun. And this had angst on it, unlike the other one which was full of fluff and humor.**

 **So yeah. I hope you guys still continue following this story. :)**

* * *

 _Wednesday._

After a short argument in the clubroom, the four first-years decided to visit Tsukishima and Yamaguchi's classroom booth – the fortunetelling room. "Okay, so the first thing we have to do is get a fortune cookie!" Hinata instructed his companion. Tsukishima craned his neck. "… This is _our_ classroom. We're supposed to accommodate the guests, not _be_ the guests." He reminded Hinata about this being Class 1-4, the famous classroom of the famous Tsukishima Kei. Both Hinata and Kageyama blinked before turning to Yamaguchi. "Your call, Yamaguchi." Hinata said. Yamaguchi swallowed. "Since when did I become the leader?" He answered. "Okay, fine! How 'bout you two be our personal fortunetellers and accommodate us?" Hinata placed his forearm on Kageyama's shoulder; much to the latter's annoyance.

Tsukishima opened his mouth to say something in protest, but the class representative stepped out of her boundaries and _gladly_ told Tsukishima and Yamaguchi to tell the guests their fortune with a lovely smile and a glowing aura. The shirt she was wearing even had the words ' _I'll hammer your bones if you don't_ ' on it.

Again, Tsukishima had no choice.

* * *

Tsukishima looked down at the tarot cards set on the table, refusing to raise his view to Kageyama's face. Kageyama was too obvious in not wanting to even play along, since his head was cocked to the side and he didn't dare say anything. Hinata and Yamaguchi, on the other hand…

"WOAH! Is that really my fortune? So cool!"

"Yes! Oh, Hinata… look! The last card you picked says that you will get better in something you really love!"

"Volleyball! It's volleyball!"

The blonde's hand massaged his temples. He thought he wouldn't be able to hear Mashumaro and Hirari for a while because of the festival, but now he _still_ has two loud people beside him. It wasn't rare to hear Yamaguchi talk loud when he's with Hinata, but sometimes he wished Yamaguchi would _just_ keep it down. "… I thought we were here because of a new plan?" Kageyama finally said, trying to cut to the chase, leaving his tarot cards untouched. "We're going to let the horoscope fortunetellers read your horoscope and tell us how lucky you will be in love and relationships!" Hinata was even more eager than Kageyama was.

"Who's the horoscope teller, Tsuki?" Yamaguchi picked up the cards from the table and placed them neatly inside a box.

"I don't know." Tsukishima unbuttoned a few on his shirt, cursing whoever's idea it was to fill the classroom with different tents assigned with different fortune-telling styles. The tent they were in had satin cloth covering it with an intense lightbulb lighting the inside so it was impossible for cool air to get in. It felt more like a sauna than a tent.

Hinata was already dragging Kageyama out. Tsukishima followed after, not because he was interested but because he could barely breathe in that tent. As usual, Yamaguchi made sure they didn't leave anything scattered inside before he headed out. "So… let's see… oh, look! The sign on that tent is Ishikawa's drawing, right?" Hinata pointed towards what seemed to be a picture of a roulette with all the zodiac symbols decorating it. "Yeah, it's the horoscope tent." Yamaguchi introduced. Hinata's face was blooming with impatience and interest that he went running inside. Kageyama was about to walk away, but Yamaguchi decided to be a pal and lead him inside or he will be gutted by their class representative.

Tsukishima sighed in defeat. He didn't know why he was supposed to go through with this again.

Again, he was only here because he's currently the only sane person in the group.

He followed the three inside, not expecting the next events.

Just when he thought his luck would probably change today, he saw Theresa and Mashumaro on the other side of the table, wearing colorful dresses and translucent pieces of cloth draping over their noses and mouths. Mashumaro was terrifyingly waving around a realistic-looking glass eye while twirling around, the hems of her long skirt swaying along with her movements. It looked creepy. Theresa was just sitting there, smiling at the visitors.

"Welcome, wanderers… oh, hello, Tsukishima and Yamaguchi." Theresa's fortuneteller character was rubbed off when she noticed both Tsukishima and Yamaguchi staring at her oddly. Meanwhile, Mashumaro was now humming something, throwing the glass eye in mid-air and catching it with one hand. It went on repeatedly, the glass eye dropping to the floor in some occasions when she failed to catch it. "Come sit down! Don't mind her. She's… um… I don't know, to be honest, but just sit down and tell me what you seek." Theresa was glancing at her arms every now and then. "… COOL! 'SEEK' IS SUCH A STRONG WORD!" Hinata delightfully exclaimed, demonstrating his natural talent in flattery. Theresa blushed a bit and looked over to where Mashumaro was standing. The girl got dizzy spinning around that she ended up dropping to the ground, the glass eye bouncing on her head when she threw it up. The scene was both creepy and funny.

"That girl there… Kaji…" Theresa rolled up her right sleeve and showed the boys her arm. "… She told me to say these lines whenever a visitor arrives… I guess they really are deep." She laughed, even though the boys were dumbly staring at the 'script' Mashumaro wrote on Theresa's arm. "Without further ado, let's dig into our heart's desires!" Theresa delivered the next line excellently, pitching in a few English words. Kageyama and Hinata had no idea what she had just said. Being the only goody-two shoes in the group of boys, Yamaguchi whispered something to them, and a look of enlightenment showered upon their sparkling eyes. "F-Further ado!" Kageyama awkwardly repeated. "So that's what the words mean!" Hinata followed.

Tsukishima's eyebrow twitched.

Theresa took out a large hardbound book from under the table and placed it in front of them. "Now… what do you seek?" She said. Mashumaro was now leaning down and peeking over Tsukishima's shoulder, grateful that he was sitting on a chair since she knew she could never do that when he's standing up. "What's your zodiac sign, Tsukishima?" Her voice was dangerously close and high-pitched that Tsukishima's shoulders tensed. He refused to turn his head because her face was just inches away from his ear. "I'm a Libra, but I have no interest in elemental star signs or the gods that rule over them." He made it clear that he did not want to be in there and he was not having fun at all. And he has no intentions in letting Mashumaro know that they've been stalking her friend for days now.

"We want to know what Ishikawa's zodiac sign is and if it's compatible with Kageyama's!" Hinata shouted, much to Tsukishima's muted horror. There goes the 'secret' he's been trying to keep.

Theresa blinked. "Hirari is an Aries!" Mashumaro quickly answered, ignoring the rest of Hinata's statement and that the boy just indirectly said that they're only here for information about _Ishikawa Hirari_. Tsukishima wondered if his right eardrum was still okay after the girl technically _shouted_ while her chin rested on his shoulder. It's as if she was openly saying 'go on a date with her, Kageyama!'. "A-And, Kageyama?" Theresa was slowly losing her composure. Mashumaro's lively presence and inability to read the atmosphere was draining all her pent-up energy.

"Capricorn." Kageyama tried to recall, relieved that he was still able to remember the zodiac equivalent to his birthday.

"Get off my shoulder." Tsukishima hissed at Mashumaro. "Haha!" Instead of getting offended, she just mockingly laughed at his face before standing up straight and leaving him thinking of how to remove the annoying eerie sound that was left to echo in his ears.

He was so done babysitting three rash volleyball players and a former fairy. He was so done with life.

Theresa opened the book and turned to the Capricorn page. The boys stared in awe when they realized that all the pages were handwritten. "Y-You wrote _everything_?" Yamaguchi's eyes were widening as he focused on the words. "Oh, no! Well, not all of it. Kaji did 70% of the work. She's a great note-taker and writer since she was able to summarize everything we've researched." Theresa's finger ran across the page, searching intently for the Capricorn matches. "Oh, here it is!"

" _Aries is a born leader whilst Capricorn is a quiet and mature sign. The question of who will dominate cannot be answered with Aries right away. Why? Imagine Aries as a bubbly and young worker entering the world of business. Capricorn, on the other hand is a 'been there, done that' CEO. With a ruling Capricorn boss to control the eager and passionate Aries, it can be said that the Aries can't simply get what it wants that easily anymore. It simple means that the innocent and young Aries' role is to pull the open-minded and mature Capricorn into new and adventurous ideas while Capricorn is to control Aries' rowdy and rash behavior."_

The boys blinked twice, dumbfounded. "… Something seems off…" Yamaguchi spoke up. "It's like Kageyama's the Aries while Ishikawa's the Capricorn. The personalities are switched." Tsukishima explained. He knew from the start that the zodiac won't be much help in Kageyama's mission impossible.

'Leader', 'rash' and 'passionate' are definitely not terms used to describe Ishikawa Hirari.

'Quiet' and 'mature' are definitely not terms used to describe Kageyama Tobio.

"Oh, well. It says the Capricorn is the boss. That's not much different from being a King, anyway." Tsukishima adjusted his glasses, smirking. Kageyama gritted his teeth and shot a nasty glare at the blonde. Hinata was biting his nails, since he was out of ideas to convince Kageyama to ask the girl out.

All of the sudden, the book was shut close. If it weren't for the cloth surrounding them and making up the tent, the echoing sound of the slam would have been heard by all people in the classroom. Mashumaro's left hand firmly made its place on the cover of the book while her right hand rested on her hips. She had a smile on her face, immediately giving Tsukishima bad news. "My turn!" She lifted the book from the table and opened it slightly, making sure no one else sees what she was reading.

"Oooohhh! It says here Capricorn is supposed to ask an Aries out on date in order to succeed in something the Capricorn loves! In your case, it's volleyball, right?" She shifted her gaze to Kageyama, whose face was painted with a pink tint. His lips started quivering and he couldn't think of words to string together. "S-Show me evidence!" He demanded. "She wrote that! That's enough evidence!" Hinata obviously lied, since he was unable to look at Kageyama straight in the eye like he always did.

Grinning, Mashumaro turned the book to face them, showing them the words. It didn't take Tsukishima a while to figure out that there _was_ something fishy about her actions, since he spotted her thumb covering the page number below. "I-It's true! Kageyama! Ask her out! We might be able to develop a new technique if you did!" Hinata's persuasion skills were at point since Kageyama stood up from his seat and bowed to both Theresa and Mashumaro. "Thank you very much!"

"Hey! It also says here that if you give cookies to Aries, the percentage of her saying 'yes' is 100 percent!" Yamaguchi didn't really believe in horoscopes, but he was smart enough to know how to convince a volleyball freak to ask a drawing geek out. It was a funny pair, but he liked the idea of pulling Kageyama out of his shell. It was the same for Hirari, too. "Come on, let's go!" Hinata was once again, pushing Kageyama out with the help of Yamaguchi. "Stop pushing, dumbasses!"

When the trio gone out to buy cookies, Tsukishima stopped to look at Mashumaro who flinched upon eye contact. She accidentally dropped the book on her feet. "Ow!" She fell to the floor, clutching her poor toes. "… That page never existed, right?" He bluntly asked her. Mashumaro tilted her head and giggled. It was a really adorable and mischievous giggle that Tsukishima couldn't help but smile subtly, although he immediately placed his frown back on. "I stuck that piece of bond paper on the book while you guys were arguing." She stood up and skipped towards the exit of the tent. Tsukishima shrugged his shoulders, feeling irritated at her strange upbeat behavior. He was about to head out, when Theresa called. "Tsukishima… she's an Aquarius."

He looked back at the girl, and she already readied the Libra page on the book and had an irritating smile that Tsukishima was tempted to say something rude just to get it off her face.

" _A Libra and Aquarius relationship is an intelligent relationship, although Libra is more open-minded and won't be swayed by Aquarius' eccentricities. Both of them find intelligence and intellectuality sexy, and they both see the world in their own special ways, although Libra's eyes are more accepting. Aquarius values freedom very much, but is willing to sacrifice that playful freedom to make time for Libra. However, Aquarius is the least romantic out of all the signs and will constantly need to make Libra feel loved. Gentle Libra will coax Aquarius into more real emotions than they think possible while_ _carefree_ _Aquarius is capable of telling Libra that sometimes, it's okay to take a risk and make an effort."_

Tsukishima's eyebrow twitched once again. It was surprisingly accurate, but he chose not to say anything and walked away. "You two seem really compatible." Theresa told him.

He went out the tent and decided to forget about it. Besides… she wasn't his girlfriend.

* * *

Hinata was jumping around every food and souvenir stall he sees with twinkling eyes, forgetting the reason why they're there and what they were supposed to buy. "Calm down, moron. It's not the first time a cultural festival was held." Kageyama walked with his hands in pockets, scanning every food stall he sees. The takoyaki stall seems tempting. Tsukishima was trailing from behind side-by-side with Yamaguchi.

Now, he could hardly care about anything at the moment since they're inside the school, anyway. If ever Kageyama or Hinata gets in trouble, the school will have to deal with the oddball duo and that is none of Tsukishima's business anymore. However, he had grown strangely accustomed to having two extra people with him(besides, Yamaguchi) that it almost scares him in a bad way. Besides, he didn't want to spend the rest of his day in the clubroom with Tanaka and the others or stay in their tent-filled classroom, decorated with an illusion of stars on the walls and ceilings.

"That looks delicious! Let's buy that!" Hinata pointed at the takoyaki stand where Kageyama was coincidentally staring at. Kageyama looked down at his feet then to the takoyaki stand, a tinge of pink on his cheeks symbolizing that he really wanted to buy one but he had no money with him at the moment since he just left his bag with the wallet inside in the clubroom. Hinata's smile was replaced with a scrunched-up look of curiosity. Kageyama's distressed face was truly more horrifying than his usual frown. "You allergic to takoyaki? You don't like takoyaki?" He asked the taller boy, waving his hand in front of Kageyama's face. A vein popped on the setter's forehead, his eyebrows creasing further until they almost met at the middle.

"You didn't tell me we were going here! I don't have my wallet with me, dumbass Hinata…" Kageyama's yell turned into a grumble halfway, his face darkening into fifty shades of red out of embarrassment. He certainly was too prideful to let anyone treat him. "Hmm? That's not a problem. Nishinoya-san told us that when we're in a pinch, we should resort to 'Tsukishima alternative methods'." Hinata didn't even look troubled at all. "NO!" Kageyama immediately shouted, making it clear that he really did not want anyone to treat him, especially the beanpole. "Hey! Why are you always so picky? First, you wanted to be able to toss, receive, and spike all by yourself. Next, you didn't want Tsukishima to teach us for the exams! And now, you don't want him to treat us? You'll never be able to ask a really nice girl like Ishikawa out! She's smart and caring and not picky and—ow!" Hinata's face was grabbed by an angry setter.

Watching from a distance, Tsukishima and Yamaguchi sweat-dropped at the two idiots.

"What are they doing?" Yamaguchi asked. Tsukishima didn't even make an effort to answer such a rhetorical question, his gaze focused on Hinata who was suspiciously dragging a scowling Kageyama towards them. "We ordered takoyaki!" The short crow finally let go of Kageyama's arm. "Tch." Kageyama looked like a spoiled brat in Tsukishima's and Yamaguchi's eyes, their minds washing over the memory and false knowledge that Capricorns are supposedly mature.

Tsukishima chuckled. "Giving up on the cookies, eh?" He decided to razz an already angry Kageyama a bit more just for fun. To their surprise, Kageyama didn't even bat an eyelash at Tsukishima's words. He just stood there beside Hinata, scowling to a great extent. It didn't take long until they heard a bell sound. "Oh, it's done!" Hinata looked back at the takoyaki stand. Kageyama finally looked at Tsukishima, his face back to normal.

"By the way, Tsukishima, pay for it, okay?" Hinata skipped towards the stand, sniffing in the scent of newly-cooked squid takoyaki. Yamaguchi nervously watched Tsukishima's reaction at the corner of his eye and regretted it. Tsukishima's face was even more terrifying than Kageyama's. "I am not going to pay for anything that does not benefit me." He calmly told them with a rather cheerful smile, but a cheerful Tsukishima is a furious Tsukishima, and Yamaguchi knew that very well.

Kageyama cleared his throat. "T-Thanks." He bowed reluctantly before heading back to the stand as well. Tsukishima was taken aback at the King's show of gratitude, but he was still not paying for it. "Tsuki… the food stalls here have a different mode of payment than normal." Yamaguchi started explaining, mustering up his courage to reveal the truth to Tsukishima. "So?" The blonde responded, suddenly feeling a tingling sensation of fear running in his veins.

"In paying for the food, you have to give the name and class of the one who's paying. It's kind of like a bank account record passed to the homeroom teachers. It's the homeroom teachers' job to collect payments from their students once the day ends. I think what Hinata means to say is that they listed your name in there."

A crack ran along the sides of Tsukishima's eyeglasses.

* * *

Finally.

Tsukishima watched as Kageyama nervously looked around for signs of people.

Finally.

Hinata and Yamaguchi were hiding from afar, silently cheering for Kageyama, while Tsukishima was just watching Kageyama from the same spot.

Finally.

"Coast clear!" Hinata tried keeping his voice down as he signaled Kageyama. The setter swallowed his saliva, and opened the locker.

Finally.

Tsukishima let out a relieved sigh, making sure Yamaguchi and Hinata didn't notice him do so. They _finally_ decided to do something _normal_ like putting cookies in a girl's locker along with a letter of confession. It's _finally_ over.

Kageyama shoved the cookies roughly into the locker, clumsily breaking a few crumbs with his strong and panicky grip. He blushed at the sight of the pink floral-designed envelope with, hopefully, a cute stationary inside. Breathing in air, making sure his lungs were filled with the oxygen needed to complete his stunt, he placed it carefully(although it was a struggle for Kageyama to be careful) inside before closing it. He was finally able to exhale. He looked over to where his companions are and saw Hinata with a more-than-happy expression and Yamaguchi wiping off a tear he just shed. Tsukishima just stood there with a smirk on his face and hands in his pockets.

The setter heard footsteps and a bunch of females' voices coming. His eyes widened and he dashed over to where Hinata was, almost stumbling over when he bumped into a girl. "Sorry!" They said in unison. When Kageyama finally reached his mates, they all bumped their fists into one another. Except Tsukishima because he's an asshole.

"Okay! It's a mission success! Good job, team!" Hinata looked even more kingly than Kageyama in their current situation, as he lightly tapped Kageyama on the shoulder for a job well done.

Tsukishima suddenly froze in his place. "… Oi, King." His voice was stern and rude, ruining the good atmosphere that was there once upon a time. "Ha?" Kageyama tried to retain his nice mood, but just looking at Tsukishima fixing his eyeglasses up the bridge of his nose is already irksome enough for Kageyama's eyes.

"…You put it on the _wrong_ locker, you stupid royal Highne—" Tsukishima's anger dripped from his words, cutting off his sentence by gritting his teeth.

"HA!?"

Hinata, Kageyama, and Yamaguchi all scrambled back to their previous spot, accidentally bumping into each other's shoulders. Hinata fell flat on the floor face-first when Yamaguchi accidentally elbowed his back. "Ah! Sorry!" Yamaguchi panicked as he tried pulling Hinata up. Kageyama watched in complete terror as an unknown girl opened the locker he just put his gifts into. The girl looked surprised for a moment, and then a blush crept up her cheeks when her friends started teasing her about what they found in her locker. "A-Abort mission!" Yamaguchi stood up and ran towards the girls.

"A-A guy is dashing towards us!" One of the female students pointed at Yamaguchi, who had an intense expression on his face as he ran. Ear-piercing screams came from all directions, and Hinata finally ran after Yamaguchi, clutching his bleeding nose with one hand.

Meanwhile, Tsukishima and Kageyama were bickering. "T-The locker had 'Ishikawa' on it!" Kageyama reasoned out. "Are you _that_ stupid? There's not just _one_ Ishikawa studying in this school." Tsukishima wasn't angry because Kageyama was stupid. He was angry for the fact that he thought all of it would be over by now, but the Royal Majesty just had to be clumsy over a petty issue such as placing a letter inside a locker. It wasn't that hard. He didn't even have to talk to Ishikawa directly. But he _still_ failed in the simplest and most normal attempt in the field of love.

Tsukishima wondered if Nishinoya was right about him being worse than Kageyama in love attempts. He was probably wrong, after all. Kageyama really is the _worst_ in everything that includes being interested in anything else besides volleyball.

The girl had already opened the envelope, but Yamaguchi snatched the letter and bag of cookies from her hands. "I-I'm so sorry! This is, um, this is for my mother!" The freckled boy was just as bad in lying as Hinata was. Probably even worse, since he was too sweet to lie. Hinata slid through the floor with his feet and went in front of Yamaguchi, shielding him from the glares he received from the girl's friends. "Hi, we—" Hinata couldn't finish his explanation when the girl started crying on the spot. Both boys shrieked inwardly.

"Hey! You made her cry!"

"You're so mean! That was a letter for her! Her last name's even on the envelope!"

Stuff was thrown at Hinata and Yamaguchi. The raging female species grabbed everything available on the floor or in their lockers, aiming at the poor boys. "Gak! Ouch!" Hinata tried jumping away to avoid them. In the end, they just ran away with their hands on the back of their heads, the fuming women calling and cursing after them while chasing. Tsukishima and Kageyama watched pitifully at the scene.

"Tch. Those cookies, the decorated envelope, and stationary were expensive for my taste, too." Kageyama complained. "That's your fault for being careless. You should have just asked a commoner to do the errand for you, Your Highness." Tsukishima blurted out.

However, Kageyama did not even say anything mean in return. Instead, he replied with "That's okay. We listed your name as the buyer when we chose it from the stalls. You didn't know?"

Another crack ran along the sides of Tsukishima's eyeglasses.

* * *

They retreated back to the clubroom.

"Dammit, I give up." Kageyama pressed a ball against his face, tired from the day's work. Yamaguchi was plastering a wound on his face, which was the result of a book thrown at him by an angry female. "Why are women so frightening?" He asked no one in particular. Hinata was lying down on the floor with a tissue stuck in his nose, absorbing the oozing red liquid, as he stared at the ceiling. Tsukishima's eyes were narrowing at his wallet, hatching up a plan to run away from his homeroom teacher when she asks for the payments to all the useless stuff his idiot teammates bought.

Hinata took something out of his pocket and waved it around. "At least I got the letter back… I saved Kageyama from further embarrassment." His voice was low and droopy. The three other people in the clubroom looked at the letter, inquisitiveness washing all their exhaustion away. Tsukishima snatched the letter from Hinata, his smug smile back on his face. "H-Hey! Don't read that!" Hinata jumped up to get it, but the blonde was far too tall.

Kageyama and Yamaguchi were both tall enough to see what was written on it, though.

" _When I saw you, my heart all went "bam!" and "doki doki!"!_

 _Please go on a date with me, Ishikawa!_

 _You made my life go "ahhh" and "ooh-lala!"._

 _With love, Kageyama."_

Before they knew it, Kageyama was already wrestling Hinata on the floor. "YOU DUMBASS! YOU PLANNED ON MAKING HER READ THAT AND RUIN MY IMAGE, YOU PIECE OF CRAPPY—!?"

Yamaguchi and Tsukishima had an air of misery and shame around them as they read the letter over and over again, trying to understand what it's supposed to mean. "… So this is how Hinata confesses…?" Tsukishima felt a headache coming. "… Seems like it." Yamaguchi could hardly contain his concern over the poor confession skills of the oddball duo.

The door was opened all of the sudden and all four boys halted everything they've been doing, as if they had just been caught in act of a crime. Nishinoya and Tanaka entered the room, a confident smile plastered on their rather glowing faces. "Kageyama, that frown on your face is unpleasant so we're going to change it!" Nishinoya assured.

"T-This is permanent!" Kageyama defended.

Tanaka and Nishinoya quickly put both Yamaguchi and Hinata in headlocks, whispering something into the boys' ears. The tired look from the first-years' eyes were replaced with a shine. "Kageyama!" Hinata dropped the bag of crushed cookies on Kageyama's palms and quickly ran out the room. Yamaguchi followed after.

Tsukishima raised an eyebrow at the two second-years. Nishinoya's hands were on the blonde's shoulders, supporting himself as he jumped up and down as Tanaka whispered something to the blonde, making Tsukishima let out a snicker. The three of them started walking out of the room. "O-Oi!" Kageyama tried interrupting their actions, but the only thing Tsukishima did was look back and smirk deviously. "Good luck, your royal Highness."

Then the door was shut.

With teeth grinding against each other and fists clenching in infuriation, Kageyama stomped after them, opening the door and slamming it against the wall. His dangerous expression was the first thing that greeted a certain someone who was just standing there fearfully.

Hirari's face drained as soon as she was greeted by an atrocious sight. Her hand was lifted, about to reach the doorknob, until it was opened. She just stood there with her mouth hung agape. "A-A—" She stuttered.

After a few seconds of awkward silence, both of them jumped away, tumbling down on the floor in shock. "S-Sorry." Kageyama tried crawling back towards her when he saw her shaking, traumatized. He picked up the cookies he dropped, wondering if she still likes it when the bread crumbs are already in bits and pieces. Hirari choked on particularly nothing. "T-Tanaka asked me to fetch something from the clubroom, so I, uhh… sorry!" The girl kneeled down with her head pressed on the floor, making Kageyama panic.

"Stop! Wait, stand up!" His other hand grabbed ahold of her wrist. Hirari was surprised at the strong grip. He really didn't know how to be gentle. Noticing that there was no one around, Kageyama remembered what he was supposed to be doing. _"What were the words again? Shit!"_

Hirari just tilted her head and raised an eyebrow when they both stood up. Kageyama had a funny look on his face, as if he was really scared of something. His eyes were darkening and his face was all red. He was even sweating heavily. "Be…" He hiccupped accidentally before he could continue. He covered his mouth in complete mortification, his face darkening even more with an intense red tint.

The girl honestly wanted to laugh at the hiccup, but she valued her life so she didn't.

"Be..."

"… Be?"

"BE!"

"H-Ha? Be what?"

The scene was getting even more awkward as time went by. Kageyama thought this was now or never, his eyes looking down as he suddenly decided that the ground was much more interesting than the girl's eyes. Or maybe he was just making up excuses. He inhaled and exhaled. _"Shit!"_

He suddenly bowed his head down and shoved the cookies to the girl's face in panic, a muffled yelp escaping Hirari's mouth as she used her hands to lower the cookies and his hands down from her face. She was about to yell at him and ask what his problem was, but she was cut off in an instant.

" **BE MY DATE, DAMMIT!"**

 _Chirp._

 _Chirp._

 _Chirp._

 _Tweet._

 _Tweet._

 _Camera snap._

"Did you capture that?" Nishinoya asked. Tanaka gave him a thumbs-up as he showed them the camera. Sugawara hit them both at the back of their heads. "Why's he talking like Tanaka!?" He scolded, blaming the two for teaching Kageyama the wrong idea about love although they didn't really teach him anything. Azumane and Daichi were just staring at the scene. "He did it!" Yamaguchi and Hinata hugged each other. "SUCCESS!" They both said, barely whispering. "Would she even say 'yes' to that?" Tsukishima doubted everything about the mission.

Hirari and Kageyama were both frozen like statues. The girl's eyes were wider than with her usual shocked expression. She was blushing. Sweat dripped from her forehead down to the side of her face. Kageyama still had his head down. "Ah? O-Okay." She just said, still a bit speechless and thunderstruck.

Upon hearing her answer, Kageyama looked up at her face with a quivering open mouth and eyes as wide as hers. His deadly grip on the poor cookies loosened although he was still stiff. He slowly and mechanically stood up straight, the same expression still on his face. "Kageyama?" Hirari asked. "S-Should I go now? Yeah? Friday, right? Ohhh.. okay… so Friday…right?" Hirari awkwardly took a step backward.

Kageyama wasn't breathing.

Meanwhile, behind a bush, a group of volleyball players were panicking and arguing if they should get out there and perform first-aid to an unbreathing Kageyama or just stay put in the bush and watch the events unfold.

To Hirari's horror, a completely red and flustered Kageyama fell backward, hitting the floor. Little tears of happiness and relief spurted out of his eyes at the same time blood from his nose did. He still had the same expression, though – wide eyes and an open mouth. "G-Get a doctor!" The volleyball players suddenly ran up to the poor setter, screaming and jumping.

"I-Ishikawa! Perform mouth-to-mouth resuscitation on—"

"TANAKA! STOP MAKING THE SITUATION WORSE!"

* * *

 _Thursday._

Tsukishima tossed and turned on his bed, the rays of sunlight seeping in through the blinds covering his window. He covered his head with a pillow, refusing to get up from bed. He was still exhausted even though Ukai cancelled practice yesterday night.

Loud footsteps were heard making their way towards his room. Suddenly, the door was slammed open. "Kei!" His mother's stern and angry voice astonished him. He jolted upright, not noticing that he was already on the edge of the bed. He fell down the floor with a loud thud, the blankets entangling his arms and legs. He blinked, his mother's upside-down figure looming over him.

"WHAT HAPPENED TO YOUR JACKET? DO YOU EVEN KNOW HOW MUCH THIS COST?"

She held up the jacket high, the tear on the sleeves visible enough even for Tsukishima's upside-down vision.

Yep. He was really going to kill Hinata and Yamaguchi for this.

 _17 hours left before the big event._


	15. Chapter 15 Selfish

_Thursday_.

Tsukishima walked into the classroom. He was irritated at the shouting of the fortunetellers, pretending to be possessed by some kind of Taurus spirit. Even though they were inside tents, their muffled voices still filled the air. Now that Kageyama had finally asked Hirari out, what was Tsukishima going to do now?

He had absolutely nothing to do for the last two days of the cultural festival. "Tsuki!" A familiar voice rang in his ears. He glanced at the direction and spotted Yamaguchi running toward him. For a second there, Tsukishima actually visualized Yamaguchi _and_ Hinata running toward him. He rubbed his eyes, and confirmed that it was just Yamaguchi thankfully. He must be going nuts. Spending almost a week with the bunch is totally killing his brain cells and vision. Not to mention, he needed to go get new eyeglass lenses before going home yesterday, all because they got cracked for an _unknown_ reason.

"I'm going to help out with the class today! We barely did anything since we were so busy with Kageyama, so I thought we should make up for it." The freckled boy rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "Okay." Tsukishima barely batted an eyelash, as he dug his hand into his pocket and took out his iPod, checking for a good song to play. He didn't notice something that fell out of his pocket at the same time his iPod was taken out. Yamaguchi parted ways with the blonde to help in class while Tsukishima walked away, eyes focused on the screen of the iPod.

"Oooohhhhh, what's this?" The annoying and lively voice made Tsukishima flinch. It was bad timing for him since he hasn't found a song that could mute out his surroundings yet. He turned around and saw Mashumaro picking up what seems to be a hard piece of crumpled paper. It was in a state where it got wet once and just dried up. Surprisingly, the ink of the pen used to write on it didn't get smudged. "What… 'doki doki'… I-Ishikawa!? No, wait… KAGEYAMA!?" Mashumaro reacted upon reading the letter, slightly weirded out with the choice of words. Being a writer made her picky.

She looked up at Tsukishima with wide eyes. There it goes. She's going to ask if Kageyama asked her friend out for real, Tsukishima predicted. She's also going to ask if Kageyama was really the one who wrote such a useless love letter. And she's also going to ask if Kageyama is in love with—

"WHY ISN'T THE INK SMUDGED? YOUR PANTS CAME FROM THE WASHER, RIGHT? OR MAYBE YOU NEVER WASHED THEM AT ALL!" Mashumaro gasped.

For a moment there, Tsukishima was careful not to shoot lasers from his eyes, for the sake of his eyeglasses not cracking. Of course, he was thinking sarcastically. "I wash my clothes, you idiot. We have a dryer so we don't have to wait for the sun to come out, unless you've never seen a dryer before. Also, my mom takes out all the stuff in my pockets before she tosses them into the washer and just returns them as soon as the clothes dry." He explained. "Cool mom. She has way too high respect for your stuff."

Tsukishima may never really say it out loud, but he got that trait from his mom – he doesn't touch other's things unless necessary and he immediately puts them back to their original state or position if he ever did.

"I thought you were going to play fortuneteller?" He asked her, not because he was curious, but because he didn't really want to spend a whole tiresome day with yet another annoying companion. The girl played with her hair, ignoring his question. "Hey, how did you find out I haven't seen a dryer before?" She asked with a pretty smile on her face. A pretty annoying smile.

He was tempted to cover her whole face with his hands – it's possible – just to stop her from saying any more stupid stuff. She's too random and infuriating. Instead, he placed his headphones on his ears, pretending that he was playing a song and walked away. To his dismay, the girl was trying to keep up with his face. The size difference of their steps was too big so she was half-running. The length of their legs had such a huge difference, too. "What are you always listening to?" She asked, but Tsukishima decided to ignore her as they walked along the hallways.

He figured she'd just start another topic even if he didn't answer, though. They barely talked, and only interacted through group activities or if she was in the gym. Sometimes, Tsukishima regretted bringing her back to the real world. She was _still_ weird even if she wasn't a fairy anymore. "I like band songs." She suddenly said, successfully catching Tsukishima's attention. He slowed down his pace and took the time to stare at her as she skipped beside him.

His eyes trailed down, studying her. She was pretty. Her dark auburn brown hair reached past her shoulders and had waves and curls at the ends. It was messy, but he knew that it wouldn't fit her to have completely straight hair. There was even a tiny braid tucked behind her ear and accessorized with a feather at the end. His eyes went down until he reached her chestnut eyes, her pointed and nicely-shaped nose and then, her lips. They were small and tinted.

He realized that he never really knew who she was and they were still strangers up to this point. He only knew about her past and her desire to change the future. That was it. He didn't know what her favorite color was, what food she eats, or even what movies she liked watching. "I really like band songs. I like hearing the bass guitar notes and the drum beats. I like those kinds of sounds." She continued on talking, even though she wasn't even sure if he was listening.

Sighing, Tsukishima took his headphones off when they finally reached the second-years' classrooms. After walking aimlessly, they ended up exploring a foreign hallway with different and more creative booths readied. "So what do you really listen to, Tsukishima?" She meekly grabbed ahold of his shirt, much to his annoyance. He looked down at her and noticed that she had her head down, with her hair covering her face. He remembered that she didn't like crowds of strangers. "You're going to have to grab my headphones from my neck if you want to know." He smirked, knowing that she wouldn't be able to reach it with her height. She pouted, and it looked so adorable, Tsukishima immediately looked away.

He only continued the conversation because he wanted to make fun of her. It's not because he wanted to make sure she was comfortable with him, even in a sea of people. It's not that.

 _And pigs fly_. It also wasn't the first time he lied to himself.

He was pulled out of his thoughts when she suddenly started talking about her home computer getting a virus because she plugged her USB in from a public computer. He opened his mouth, ready to slightly insult her when she swiftly started a new topic revolving around how she was experiencing writer's block for days. "I couldn't write anything! I just stared at the paper, unable to think of words! Oh, and I also had this dream about sharks! By the way, have you watched the new movie about dinosaurs? Do you even like dinosaurs? Oh, and our History lesson when this festival ends will be so cool! It's about China's—"

She zipped her mouth shut when Tsukishima held out a hand in front of her face. She was far worse as a human being than a fairy. "My eardrums had enough. I can feel my brain bursting just by hearing your stream of fairytales." Tsukishima complained, a frown visible on his face. However, he did hear her say 'dinosaur'. Was she also interested in dinosaurs?

He tried to recall everything she said, planning to reply to her statements while inserting an insult here and there. "You should know better than to insert your USB into a public computer. That was your own carelessness' fault, short stuff." He sniggered, noticing that there was precisely a 33cm gap in their heights. She just looked up at him, her head tilting to the side. Her curious expression was then replaced with a shocked one. "HOW'D YOU KNOW I INSERTED MY USB IN A PUBLIC COMPUTER?"

Tsukishima swore he wanted to throw her out the window _now_.

" _You_ said it earlier, you dolt." He was pissed at her randomness, forgetfulness, and natural clumsiness and he just wished she'd just go away and leave him be. Instead, they ended up wandering into a random classroom, all because she won't stop squealing about the 'library' inside Year 2 Class 5. "Woaaaaaaah, look at _all_ the books! These are old books, right? They don't exist in our library anymore, right? That's why they were exhibited here by students, right?" She started babbling, her eyes gleaming with a rare excitement. Because of her frequent skipping, she almost bumped into a rusty-looking bookshelf, but Tsukishima instinctively grabbed the back of her collar, accidentally choking her. "Ack!"

He wondered if she would get buried by the amount of books that could have possibly dropped on her if his hand didn't make it in time.

She just looked at him and grinned. He scowled. "You know Minori, right?" She suddenly asked. "Yeah. That girl's our classmate, short stuff. Of course, I know her." The blonde had no idea why she loved asking such rhetorical questions. "You know, I think she really doesn't like me." She picked up a book from a shelf and browsed through the pages.

He knew she was dense but he wasn't informed that she was _this_ dense. "I kind of like her, though." She followed with a simple smile plastered on her face. His eyes widened a bit, and then he raised an eyebrow in amusement. "You sure are masochistic, Maro-chan." He teased her a bit. She had her back turned to him, so he didn't notice her cheeks gradually reddening at the nickname. She clumsily dropped the book and bent down to pick it up. "Is it wrong to like someone who hates you?"

"No, but as a human being, that's nonsensical." Tsukishima grabbed a book from the top shelf. Mashumaro peered at the cover. It was a book about airplanes and trigonometry. "But she's nice, right?" She proceeded to read another book while still holding the one she just picked up from the floor. "I don't know. Go talk to her and figure it out." His tongue subtly clicked, since the edge of the page slid against his index finger, earning him a paper cut. "But she's scary!"

Tsukishima stared at his bleeding finger with furrowed eyebrows. "Then don't talk to her. Easy as that." He gritted his teeth. How come he always gets injured or in trouble when he's with this childish young lady? He was getting tired already. "But her presence in the room makes me uneasy when we don't talk." Her last statement made Tsukishima snap his head at her, a look of warning forming on his pale face.

"You're annoyed with me now, oh my gosh." She told him, although her face was normal as ever. He grunted. "You realized that _now_?"

She laughed. "Hey, do you want to go to the food stalls or something? I heard the ice cream tastes good! And Theresa asked me to get the 'day-off' so I'm free today!" She was about to tug at his shirt, but Tsukishima pulled his arm away, his finger still hurting from the paper cut. Astonishment washed over Mashumaro's soul. "I-Is there something wrong, Tsu—"

"You're such a burden. I don't even know why I even brought you back to reality."

Her heart stopped. Tsukishima tried searching in his pocket for a Band-Aid, unmindful of the way the girl bowed her head and pretended that she didn't get hurt. It wasn't like her to get hurt with words. She loved all kinds of words. But the way Tsukishima strung her beloved words together… she didn't know what to feel. She felt her cheeks get wet. "Oh, don't worry!" Her lively voice interrupted Tsukishima's irritation. He's been so tired the whole week now, he had no time to deal with—

" **Everyone hates the outcast."**

Her words echoed. He was deaf to his surroundings, but he swore he heard her words accurately. His annoyed expression disappeared from his face and before he could react, the last thing he saw was a ghost of her disappearing figure.

At least she won't be following him all the time, right? At least he can finally enjoy his solitude, right?

 _Pigs also fly_. How many times will he have to lie to himself?

* * *

 _Friday._

"So… how'd you get into my house?" Hirari's expression was indescribable. She woke up; feeling strangely excited and flustered at the same time, remembering that today was her date with Kageyama. She skipped down the stairs, if that was even possible, while humming a song and the first thing that greeted her morning was a certain girl, lying on the couch while eating pizza. Lots of pizza.

"I used the door, Jiru." With a sing-song voice, Mashumaro successfully ruined Hirari's morning. She took a huge bite out of the pizza slice and winked at Hirari. The latter shuddered at the scene, regretting waking up in the morning. But she really can't do anything about it now. "So _why_?" She asked. "What why?" Mashumaro double-asked. Hirari wanted to throw something at her. A pizza slice, maybe?

She sat beside Mashumaro on the couch, eyeing her. "I meant, why are you here?"

"Heard you got a date." The other girl grabbed another slice gleefully in satisfaction.

Hirari stood up and went to the kitchen, blushing furiously and whining quietly. Whoever spread the news is going to die tonight. She was thinking of countless ways to sneak a chef's knife into the school grounds as she opened the fridge and grabbed a pitcher of juice. "Who told you that?" She poured juice into a drinking glass and took a sip. Mashumaro stood up, still eating pizza, with little bits and pieces of cheese stuck on her face and bangs(She has no class when eating finger food.) and went towards where Hirari was. Leaning against the wall, she answered calmly. "Yamaguchi."

On second thought, Hirari changed her mind about killing anyone. Yamaguchi was far too sweet to kill.

The morning was peaceful and the birds chirped outside, calling for companions. "You better look sexy tonight." Mashumaro purred, emphasizing on a certain word. Hirari's blush deepened fifteen shades, she opened her mouth, completely speechless and embarrassed. "H-Hey! That's not necessary! Besides, he probably just asked me out because there was no one else to ask or he probably likes you since you're pretty and is just using me to—" "There goes your bad habit of overthinking."

Mashumaro smiled. "I'll help you look your best tonight. Okay, probably not your best since we both suck in doing makeup, but hey! We'll try something out!"

* * *

If glares can burn, Kageyama would have already incinerated the magazine page being shoved to his face as dangerously close as possible. Hinata's finger pointed at the image. It was an expensive-looking tuxedo that had a red rose decorating the pocket positioned on the left side of the chest. "No." He scowled, but Hinata was a stubborn fellow.

"We can always borrow a coat that looks like this from Tsukishima!"

"Absolutely not!"

Hinata sighed in defeat. He flipped the fashion magazine pages over, searching for cheaper prices. "You're so picky, Kageyama." He mumbled in a grouchy voice, almost tearing off one page out of annoyance. They've been at this for hours, and Kageyama _still_ hasn't chosen what to wear for tonight. From the other side of the room, Yamaguchi was watching the two apologetically. He was waiting for Tsukishima, but the blonde needed some time alone after consecutive tiring days. "Um…" Yamaguchi's soft voice pulled Hinata out of his thoughts. "… Kageyama and I are almost the same height, and I have a spare tuxedo at home, so… if you want, I can give it to you as a festival gift."

Kageyama and Hinata blushed in embarrassment, flustered and amazed at their teammate's niceness. "R-Really? Then Kageyama need to get ready!" Hinata was acting more like Kageyama's personal butler than the other half of the oddball duo.

Kageyama wondered if he can vote Yamaguchi for president in the next election.

* * *

Mashumaro was completely flabbergasted.

It's not like she'd actually compliment Hirari. They never throw compliments regarding each other's appearances. But her friend looked stunning. They didn't know how to do makeup, so Hirari only used a lip gloss. But her long eyelashes got even longer because of the mascara and her eyes looked really doll-like with the winged eyeliner.

Hirari twirled around, so Mashumaro could see the dress well. It was a black halter dress and she had a fur scarf draping along her shoulders and arms. The outfit was all black and it was pure. After all, Mashumaro knew that black and gothic clothing suited Hirari the best. Unfortunately, Hirari sucks at wearing heels so she had to settle with flat shoes. Her hair was in a mermaid braid, accessorized with little white flowers.

"… Okay, fine. You're gorgeous. Kill me now." It took all the courage Mashumaro had left to actually compliment her friend. She has _never_ done this before. It's natural to get nervous.

Hirari threw a pillow at Mashumaro's face because she had never been complimented by her best friend before. They weren't really the 'omg-I-love-you' type of friends. They were more like the 'you-jackass-why-are-you-so-cruel-to-me' type. They are total noobs when it comes to developing a normal friendship. Or probably even a relationship, now that Hirari's been asked out by Kageyama.

Mashumaro cleared her throat, but she failed since it ended into a series of coughing fits.

"So is he going to pick you up… or… is he really not the romantic type? He probably forgot about picking you up…" Although she tried to be honest, Mashumaro knew it would probably let Hirari down. In the end, she bit her tongue a bit harshly and rephrased her statement. "Nah, he probably won't forget about you."

Another pillow was thrown at her face. She was just _trying_ to be nice. "Y-You jerk, Maro!" Hirari's voice was stuttering and shaky that Mashumaro never really took it seriously. She opened her mouth, but was interrupted by the doorbell. Both girls suddenly panicked as Mashumaro jumped from the couch while Hirari ran towards it to fix the pillows. They both crashed into each other. Hirari luckily fell on the couch but poor Mashumaro hit her knees on the coffee table. She let out a loud yelp.

The doorbell rang again, followed by three consecutive and loud knocks. "I-Ishikawa!? Are you okay!?" Kageyama's muffled voice was heard. Mashumaro covered her mouth, thinking that Kageyama must have thought that the one who yelped was Hirari.

Hirari stood up again, pulling Mashumaro's arm violently. She skidded past the obstacle furniture along the way to the stairs, but again, poor Mashumaro had to hit her body parts before they could reach their destination. "Stay here! Don't let him see you! He's going to get _really_ embarrassed." Hirari whispered to a dizzy Mashumaro. "Y-Yes." The latter clung to the stairs, hanging on for dear life. If she tries to move now, she'll only topple down the stairs.

Meanwhile, impatient knocks were being heard through the door. Hirari smoothed her dress and breathed hastily. When she finally held her breath, she turned the doorknob.

What a sight to behold.

Kageyama stood there with the tux slung over his shoulder. He was wearing a plain white long-sleeved shirt and his hair was neatly combed. To Hirari's surprise, his necktie was very neatly done(Yamaguchi did it for him, since he didn't know how to.) and although he looked simple, the formal attire was a piece of cake for Kageyama to pull off. Hirari just stood there with her mouth hung agape.

Kageyama was doing the same thing.

"UM!" They said in unison. "NO, WAIT. YOU GO FIRST!" They both said in unison again. After that, not one of them said another word, patiently waiting for the other to talk. Suddenly, a loud crash interrupted their silence. "What was that?" Kageyama stepped forward, forgetting that Hirari was just inches from him, and peeked into the house. Hirari froze when her face was just right next to his chest. She could smell his cologne and _oh holy mother_ did it smell good. "T-That's just our…dog?" Hirari was trembling on the spot, looking up at his curious and emphasized face.

It was Kageyama's turn to freeze when Hirari's breath brushed through his neck. He cleared his throat and stepped backward, looking away. "Let's go." He told her.

As for the loud crash earlier… Mashumaro accidentally toppled over the vase on the table beside the stairs.

Since they weren't in the city, they enjoyed a nice walk to the school. Miyagi was home to them, even though it's not as luxurious as Tokyo. It was a cold night and the breeze was gentle. They just walked in silence, although they were both inwardly panicking.

" _This is it! He's going to ask if I'm cold then he'll place his coat on me! Oh no no no, I mean, all guys do it, right? I'm not ready!"_ Hirari thought.

" _Crap. She's going to get bored of me and ask if there's something wrong! What should I do, dammit!? I-I'll just wait for her to demand something, right?"_ Kageyama thought.

They walked. And walked. And walked. They also frequently glanced at each other. When they finally and accidentally developed eye contact, they both ended up smiling weirdly(Kageyama's smile did not even look like a smile) before looking away. They just looked away. Just like that.

" _NOT A WORD!?"_ They both screamed on the inside.

Kageyama cleared his throat again, his left hand on his mouth. He watched her from the corner of his eye. She was just looking up at the stars as they walked. He looked around, noticing that there are a few people walking by not far from them. There was a couple and they were holding hands while walking. The girl looked happy as the guy squeezed her hand gently. They looked so blissful and content.

Hirari was too distracted trying to find the Big Dipper and Small Dipper up in the sky. Suddenly, she felt something brush against her hand. Heat rose up to her cheeks when she realized that Kageyama's right hand was already intertwined with her left. She looked up at him in shock, ignoring the constellations. His left hand was covering his mouth as he looked away, trying to find something even more interesting than Hirari's face. He was unsuccessful, but he still looked away with a red face and his hand on his mouth. Hirari bit her lip and took a deep breath. She lightly squeezed his hand, wondering if he felt that.

To her surprise, he squeezed back.

… But it was painful.

She bit her tongue to prevent herself from reacting. He sure was clumsy. He may even be clumsier than the legendary klutz Mashumaro. Even so, she still smiled. It's the thought that counts.

They reached the school after a while, and for some reason, Kageyama was disappointed. The students were already closing their stalls, but some were looking straight at the odd couple. It was the infamous weirdo of the Media Club and the setter half from the oddball duo of the Karasuno volleyball team. Of course, nobody expected for them to show up as a couple. Nobody thought of it.

But maybe weirdoes are more capable in love than anyone thought.

Also, silence was a comfortable treasure for the both of them. They were fine with not talking, but they surely wish they'll reach a stage where they can finally ta— wait. No. They're not a real couple yet, right?

When they made their way to the gym, they were immediately greeted by the whole volleyball club. "Oh, look who the Queen is." Tsukishima teased. Hirari stared at the tall blonde. His height added incredible appeal to his outfit. He left his tux open, revealing a lean and long torso covered by his polo, of course. "WOOAAAAHH! ISHIKAWA! YOU'RE SO PRETTY!" Hinata's flattering made both Sugawara and Daichi shake their heads and smile, not in disapproval, but because of Hinata's sweet actions for the past few days. Of course, Kageyama had to look over to where Yamaguchi was. He really wanted to vote the guy as the next president and national hero.

Tanaka and Nishinoya were gawking at Hirari, but they got distracted when Shimizu entered with her red cocktail dress and messy bun outfit. Even Azumane looked really classy with the vest over a long-sleeved polo design.

Everyone else nodded in approval. Their youngest member has succeeded in getting a date and they were all proud daddies and niichans. And yes, Kageyama _is_ the baby of Karasuno. And he _is_ the youngest.

Annoyed by all the teasing and googly-eyes, Kageyama pulled Hirari towards a table. He was about to sit down when Sugawara suddenly tapped on his shoulder. "Hey. Allow the girl to sit first. Move her chair for her." The senior setter whispered. Kageyama blinked and nodded. "Okay." He agreed. He stepped towards Hirari and pulled her seat to gesture her. The girl was slightly surprised at the gentlemanly move, since she never actually expected this. She sat down…

Or not. Since Kageyama pulled the chair too far from the table and the girl had to grab hold on the edge of the table to keep herself from falling on the floor. The boys who saw the event groaned. "He sucks." Tanaka commented.

"Sorry!" Kageyama pushed the chair back but forgot the Hirari hasn't regained her balance yet. In the end, the chair hit her waist and she continued to fall on the floor butt-first. "Owwww…" She grumbled, rubbing her waist. "I-I'm sorry!" The poor clumsy boy apologized again. He took her arms, not realizing that his strong and aggressive grip was depriving her veins of the blood needed to keep her hands from getting pale, and pulled her up. Except for his grip, this feat was finally successful. "Are you alright?" He asked, tilting his head to get a better look at her face.

 _God, was she beautiful._

He stood up straight and looked away, pretending that he didn't think about anything. "I'm okay. Let's go get some food, Kageyama." Hirari avoided the awkwardness of the situation by inviting the boy to the long table filled with delicious-looking gourmet dishes. The school really did make an effort. Hirari took a glimpse around and saw how extravagant the gym looked. The smell of sweat was all gone now, and all she could catch was drifts of the perfume of people who pass by. The tables were all covered with red tablecloth embellished with golden trimmings on the edges. There was a stage ready with classical instruments.

It was about time for the music to start when they got to the table. The sounds of the violins were pleasurable to Hirari's ears. The pianist even made impromptu solos. She didn't notice that she was hardly touching her food, since her attention is so focused on the music. She lifted up a piece of meatball from her plate and slowly pushed it into her mouth. The cymbals got louder all of the sudden, surprising the daylight out of her. She accidentally dropped the meatball on her lap. "T-Tissue…" Her eyes searched the table for a tissue, but it just had to be absent.

"Oh, wait." Kageyama took out a handkerchief, which was also readied by Yamaguchi, from his pocket and stood up. He was about to press it on her lap to wipe off the residue, but Hirari's hands grabbed his wrist. "No, your handkerchief will get dirty! I-I'll just look for a tissue from the long table!" She halted his action, confusing Kageyama a bit. "But… your face also has sauce on it." He pointed out. Hirari felt her blood rise up to her cheeks. Even though Kageyama was being normal about it, she was still a girl and looking sloppy in front of her date is a big no-no. "No! It really is fine! Don't use that handkerchief!" She insisted, pushing his hand away slowly. Kageyama stared at her for a while, making her feel self-conscious. "Alright. But at least let me get the tissue."

Before she could protest, the boy was already running towards the long table. She had no choice but to wait, trying hard to hide her face from the people passing by her seat. The sauce on her face probably made her look stupid.

"Nice makeup." A familiar voice gave chills to her spine. She looked up and was greeted by a certain blonde towering above her, smirking like the jerk he was, referring to the sauce stuck around the corners of her mouth. "Geez, thanks, Tsuki." She decided to be a jerk herself and tease him with the nickname, even though they don't really talk. The guy is starting to get on her nerves, anyway. She braced herself for another insult, but was perplexed by his next remark. "Where's Kaji?"

She wasn't sure if she heard that right. She didn't say anything, waiting for the guy to say it again. "…Did you not hear me the first time or are your ears only open to Kageyama's voice? Where's your friend?" He said it again, only this time; it had an insult mixed with it. Hirari eyed him suspiciously. She really can't trust the pack leader of all the assheads in the world. "She's not coming. She doesn't want to be a 'third wheel'. Plus, nobody asked her out. Then again, she doesn't like too many people, so it's fine with her even if nobody asked her out."

She could have sworn she saw Tsukishima's face crease a little. But he was also quick in returning the poker face. He shrugged his shoulders and went away, leaving a rather staggered Hirari. Not long after, Kageyama returned and surprised Hirari with a bouquet of…

… Tissue paper.

Kageyama then roughly pressed one to Hirari's face, unintentionally suffocating her. She tried breathing with her nose but his hand was definitely large enough to wipe her whole face. When he was done, the poor girl gasped for air. She squeaked when she felt weight on her lap. _Holy shit, why is he touching her lap as if it was nothing?_

Kageyama was wiping off the residue from her thighs(although her dress was long enough to cover them) and he proceeded to crumple the used-up tissues and place them on the table. "All better?" He hoped. He always hoped for her betterment. He just didn't know it himself. "Oh, y-yeah. Thanks." Hirari couldn't erase the look on her face nor the heat his hands left on her thighs. Okay, sure, the tissue and her clothes were on the way, but hey.

They both ate in peace. Hirari wondered where she got the bravery to snatch pieces of food from his plate and laugh. He tried doing the same, but he only awkwardly managed to grab grains of rice. This made Hirari laugh even more. "Haha! You're so adorable! This is why I like you!" When she realized what she had just said, she zipped her mouth and looked at him with owl-like eyes.

Kageyama's whole face went beet-red. His shocked expression looked more like terrified than shocked. "W-What?" He had no idea what to answer, the shrimp from his chopsticks dropping back to his plate, since his hand started shaking. "Uh… I'm going to the bathroom!" Hirari stood up abruptly and ran before anyone could stop her. She really needed to calm her heartbeat down.

The girl disappeared from sight, and it was the other volleyball members' cue to step in. "KAGEYAMA! We're so proud of you! Look, we even stole shots of you two!" Nishinoya showed his cellphone screen to a completely rattled Kageyama. "I'm glad it worked out well." Yamaguchi let out a relieved sigh. "Kageyama! Don't mind your failed attempts in trying to be sweet! It doesn't suit y—ow!" Hinata put an arm around Kageyama's shoulder, but that only made it easier for Kageyama to bend the said arm. "Dumbass!"

Tanaka laughed loudly. "Now the volleyball club won't be called wimps anymore! Our youngest member has a girlfriend now!" He declared. Daichi shoved a tissue into the bald guy's mouth. "T-They're not exactly together yet! Don't pressure them!" He followed up by scolding him. "Yeah, that's right. Kageyama found a date. He gave pride to the manliness of our team, I guess." Azumane wasn't sure on how to rephrase his words. "The girl said 'yes' and they seem to be getting a lot of attention, so it's no problem for our dignity. Even though the rest of us came with no dates." Ennoshita reminded them. "Kageyama's success is Karasuno's success!" Nishinoya yelled at the top of his lungs.

Meanwhile, they didn't notice a certain girl watching them, hearing their every word. With a quivering mouth and balled-up fists, she felt tears sting her eyes.

 **She was** _ **only**_ **asked out on a date to save the team's pride. It wasn't because he wanted to.**

 **He was just pressured.**

 **And she was just stupid.**

Kageyama turned his head and saw Hirari. When their eyes met, the girl ran quickly and abrasively, never looking back. "No, wait!" Kageyama stood up from his seat and pushed his teammates away. He ran after her, but a large crowd blocked his away. "Tch." He wanted to punch himself right now, but first he had to find her.

Meanwhile, the boys looked at one another. "You idiots! It's like you're all just betting on Kageyama's success rate!" Daichi scolded with a voice angrier than usual. "B-But, that wasn't our point!" Tanaka reasoned out. "This is bad…" Sugawara sighed.

Hinata spoke up. "… Kageyama really did want to ask her out. It wasn't for pride or anything. We just used that as a reason to give him a little push, since he doesn't believe in himself when it comes to feelings." He explained. "But we have to fix this, right? Ishikawa's my friend, too…"

Everyone nodded.

* * *

Kageyama was alone in the courtyard. He looked _everywhere_ , but there was no luck. He bent down with his hands on his knees. His feet were starting to hurt since he was running around wearing leather shoes. His sweat continuously dripped from his forehead.

He heard a rustle of grass behind him. He jolted up and turned his head, a small ray of hope in his heart that she could still trust him.

" _I have to earn the trust of my teammates."_

" _The last toss wasn't a mistake. It was rejection."_

" _I tossed…"_

He turned around.

" _But no one was there."_

And yet again, even now… no one was there.


	16. Chapter 16 Parallel Hearts

Hirari rubbed her hands together for warmth. She ran so fast that she ended up tripping over something on the ground and injuring her knees. The night was chilly and cruel. It wasn't the kind gentle air that she once thought it was. It was now a dangerous chill and she swore she was at the point of getting frostbite. How can such a hot season like summer bring such cold air at night?

Now, she's silently walking along the part, hugging herself and regretting that she didn't bring a jacket with her. Her scarf was thick, but too small to cuddle her whole torso. Her braided hair was in a mess and some flowers stuck out here and there, looking out of place. Worst, her right shoe broke when she tripped. Having no choice, she decided to take them off. It was a good thing that the park was a bit grassy and she didn't have to hurt her feet stepping on rough, bare ground.

She sat on the bench, exhaling. She caused quite a scene earlier and is a bit embarrassed and regretful. "I should've tried to talk to them first… why am I such a wimp?" She muttered under her breath. She took out her phone from her purse, wishing that a certain idiot somewhere was still awake.

She probably is still awake. After all, Mashumaro's body clock is one of the most messed-up body clocks in the world.

 _[To: Marshmallow]_

 _Come pick me up at the park near the convenience store across the bridge._

Now that she typed in where she was at, she realized that she had run quite a distance from the school. Now one question can't seem to put her at ease: How was she going to face Kageyama tomorrow? Not to mention, the whole Karasuno volleyball club.

She was getting colder by the minute. She thought about calling Mashumaro to 'get her lazy ass out here and pick her up', but she was not in the mood to start an argument or to demand anything. She thought about her childhood. The sweetness and melody of Shiori's voice was beautiful, even though she was scolding Akiteru or bringing an air of command once she steps on court, encouraging the players of the old Karasuno volleyball club.

But out of all the players, she loved Akiteru the most. Everyday after practice, she would check the gym if there's anything missing or if something needs maintenance. Every single time she did, Akiteru was always there. Hirari remembered Shiori telling her the story of how they met.

" _When I was in first year high school and a new manager, the first time I checked the gym because I thought all the players went home by then, he scared me out of my wits since he enthusiastically jumped at me and asked me to toss for him. I hid in the gym closet! Haha!"_

Hirari smiled at the memory of the story. She remembered hiding in the gym closet the first time she also met the volleyball club. But Shiori and Akiteru were different. They were a cliché shoujo manga ending in a tragedy. Akiteru had to bow down and apologize to the manager once he stepped inside the gym closet. What really drew Shiori to Akiteru was his smile. It was warm and grateful.

It was full of love.

Oh, how Hirari envied Shiori for being so mature and strong. Shiori saved lives, even putting hers at risk. Shiori was Hirari's hero, and for some reason, she thought that was all there is to it. She realized that there's something more to Shiori that she envied, other than being reliable and independent.

She envied the love she had for Akiteru.

Was it one-sided? Shiori didn't know and she didn't care. She just loved everything about him. Yes, he wasn't a regular. So what? She still did. He was fine the way he is, but volleyball was his whole life. Akiteru's plays are normal and aren't on the same level as the Little Giant's. He worked hard than anyone else, but he wasn't pathetic. Pain is a feeling which either discourages you or inspires you. In Akiteru's case, it definitely inspired him. How did Hirari know that even though she hasn't seen Akiteru for ages now? Well, as a young girl, she knew his personality by heart.

Just like Kageyama, volleyball was Akiteru's life.

Hirari shook her head. It wasn't the time to be comparing the present to the past. But still, she felt stupid for actually thinking that even though she doesn't necessarily _like_ Kageyama in that kind of way, the moment he asked her out, she actually thought that she could have had the same love. Akiteru's smile was full of that love and Shiori's actions complemented it. They were beautifully matched.

She was pulled out of her deep contemplation when her phone vibrated on her hand. "Ah, the legendary queen of random finally replied."

To her surprise, it wasn't Mashumaro.

 _[From: xxxx-xxx-xxxx]_

 _This is Kageyama. Got your number from Yamaguchi._

 _Was I boring to be with? I'm sorry. Where are you?_

 _Let's go home._

Then again, maybe the kind of love she would have in the future isn't a shoujo manga love, but definitely better than a tragedy. Her hands trembled as she typed, biting her lip nervously.

He made an effort to get her number from Yamaguchi. It's always the thought that counts. Or perhaps, she was just gullible, but she wished it wasn't that.

 _[To: Kageyama]_

 _Nah, you were great. I'm sorry for running off._

 _It's okay, Maro's coming to pick me up… I think._

At least she didn't have to worry about facing Kageyama tomorrow, right? She wondered if she could skip school tomorrow, since the only activity they were going to do was clean up the entire school property to get ready for classes on Monday. There's also probably going to be a last inspection of the classroom booths by the faculty.

She stood up, deciding if she would just go home bare-footed or wait for Mashumaro. She suddenly remembered that she forgot to tell the latter to bring her slippers. She checked her phone and found a new message.

 _[From: Kageyama]_

 _You sure? Call me when you get home or if she didn't come._

He wasn't sweet or romantic. But he still never fails to make her blush. Before she knew it, she didn't feel cold anymore.

 _Let's go home._

* * *

Her eyebrow twitched.

Her other eyebrow twitched.

Her lips curved downward, quivering slightly because of the cold. Staring at the text message, she fought the urge to throw the phone away, but it was an expensive phone so she didn't.

 _[From: Jiru]_

 _Hey. I've decided to go home alone. SOOOORRRRRYYYYY! D: D: Go on home, too! I'll buy you fries tomorrow!_

She decided that it was nothing to get angry about. She knew that Hirari is the most indecisive person she had ever met. And that girl always, _always_ , changes her decision when it's already too late. This cold summer night was now included to the list. By the time she received the message, she was already just a few meters to the bridge of legend. Grumbling, she shoved her phone back inside her pocket and spun on her heels, facing the way back home.

She had not walked too far when she saw three silhouettes strutting towards her. At first, she didn't really care, since they may only be walking to her direction, but not necessarily towards her. But as the figures, which revealed themselves to be females, came closer, she realized that they were now right in front of her in a blink of an eye. They were all scowling at her scarily, as if intimidating her. She blinked, her heart starting to race. "… How dare you touch him as if he was yours?" The tallest one said. She looked like a delinquent kind of girl with shaggy hair and bandages around her knuckles.

Mashumaro tilted her head innocently. "Huh?" She dumbly replied, not having any idea to what they were trying to tell her. Suddenly, another girl hissed at her. "Don't play dumb! You've been tagging along with Tsukishima-kun since you came to his class! Who do you think you are!? His girlfriend? Well, in your dreams, you slut!"

The poor girl gulped. She was completely ignorant with the fact that the tall blonde had really aggressive fans. They were probably even more aggressive than him. She took a step backward when the last girl leaned down on her. They were, of course, a bit taller. "Huh… you're pretty… it's probably why you think our Kei will fall for you… well…" A smirk graced all the bullies' features. Mashumaro's throat went dry, her eyes widening in fear.

 _When will all the bullying stop?_

This time, her heart almost popped out of her chest in complete terror when she heard what seemed to be the clicking of a cutter. Her wide eyes slowly shifted their gaze to the hand of the tallest girl as she rose up a cutter. "… Then… if that's the case, why don't we make her even prettier? I'm sure our Kei will _love_ that so much with _disgust_." Mashumaro could have sworn she saw the girls' eyes glow red. They were smiling at her sweetly, and it was enough to make her cringe. She couldn't move. She couldn't.

 _Help._

When she finally regained her senses just as the cutter was about to slice a good cut on her milky skin, she turned around and sprinted. "Stop her!" She could their voices. Cursing at herself for not being too athletic, she knew they'd catch up to her soon. Her mind blanked, remembering Hirari. She smiled to herself, as tears started flowing with the wind blowing against her as she ran. _"At least she's not here with me. At least she won't have to run and feel weak. At least…"_

She kept running, though she could hardly see where she was going. She had been terrified by crowds and people and talking in front and recitations and—no. None of those could match up to the fear in her heart right now.

Mashumaro ran to the bridge, stepping up on the ledge. Her vision was getting blurry by the second she looked down at the river. The sound of her heartbeat deafened her, unable to hear the curses and calls escaping from the assailants' mouths. Her wide eyes turned towards them, her open mouth was shaking, inhaling in some air. Small whimpers could be heard escaping from the lump in her throat. Her pupils shrunk at the sight of the running monsters.

That's right. Everyone to her was a monster.

Moments before they could touch her, she looked back down.

And jumped.

* * *

After a long talk about how the team could apologize to Hirari, Kageyama decided to go home. He wasn't that good in socializing, anyway, and he was in a terrible mood. He put on his tux, realizing that the night became colder each step he took. Glancing up the stars, he became interested with the galaxy, all because he saw the girl do the same earlier.

The touch of her hand still lingered on his palms. It was warmer than a volleyball. He never thought there would be something that could leave an impression on him as the sport did. No, this was even stronger and he was far too young to understand it. Kageyama's heart has always been young and helpless. But he was passionate in everything he does.

What's the point of holding back?

He looked down at his feet and let out a sigh, his breath casting a trail of white smoke fleeing from his thin lips. Warming his hands in his pockets, he caught sight of something with his peripheral vision, making him look up instinctively. That's when he saw it.

There was a girl, all wet from head to toe, walking with her wobbly feet while her back was turned towards him. Her footsteps were leaving a trail of water down her lonely road. He somehow recognized the figure of the small back, thin arms, and the hair color. He fastened his pace, not realizing that he already started running. The girl, unmindful of the dangers of the night, gasped when a hand grabbed her arm and turned her around, almost making her stumble off her wet feet. She lost one slipper when she fell down the river so she looked like a homeless person at the moment.

When Kageyama looked at her straight in the eye, he noticed that the wetness on her face wasn't just plain water. They were tears. And even now, she was still sobbing.

Kageyama pursed his lips, pondering about what to do. His grip on her arms tightened, but she didn't seem to mind. Her emotional pain was far worse than what she was feeling physically. Kageyama was still trying to think of what to say, not knowing how to comfort a girl. "… I-It's okay, you…" She paused to let out a hiccup. "You don't have to… comfort m-me… I'm… just a b-burden." Her lively voice was replaced with a strained one. Kageyama cringed. "What happened?" He could barely ask.

She raised her hands to her face, wiping her tear-stained cheeks. Kageyama thought she looked like a lost kid, losing her umbrella and getting drenched by the rain. When she didn't answer, Kageyama took the initiative to grab her attention. "Kaji."

The girl looked up at him, still sniffing. "I jumped off the bridge because Tsukishima's fans were chasing after me… with a sharp object."

Kageyama felt rage grow inside him. His scowl became even more visible under the pale moonlight. He took off his coat when he noticed that she was shaking terribly – both out of fear and the coolness of the air. He then draped it over her small frame, making her give him a look of confusion. "…Why is it that you're okay with acting nice to me, but are too flustered to do the same to Hirari?" She suddenly asked, catching him off-guard. She noticed how he flinched subtly, looking down at his worn-out leather shoes.

She laughed, surprising him once again. "What's so funny?" He said, his tone slightly dripping with impatience. "You don't have to answer the question. Everyone's supposedly nervous when they try to interact with someone they're attracted to." She answered, clutching his tuxedo closer. Kageyama tilted his head. Attraction was a foreign word for him.

"I was chased by Tsukishima's fans because they probably know that he's annoyed with me, and yet I kept following him around whenever he's alone." She confessed as they walked. Kageyama didn't answer, although he did feel pissed for hearing the giant's name and his fans' rotten attitude. "Luckily… I had my eyes opened when I jumped off the bridge so I was able to control my fall. I landed on the deep part of the river and I couldn't swim well. I thought I was going to die… it's scary to have your eyes opened."

The boy felt familiarity upon hearing her words. When she stopped talking, making no motion to say more, he opened his mouth to reply. "I agree. It's scary. But that's why you have to keep going."

A look of surprise dawned upon the girl's face. She turned her head to look up Kageyama's serious face, not saying a word. Suddenly, his brows furrowed. "In my last game in junior high, there was a time I tossed and no one was there to spike it." He started his story. Mashumaro contemplated about his words, thinking about why he always related everything to volleyball. Then she remembered that her former idol Akiteru was also the same. There was a short silence, with nothing but the crickets chirping and the sound of her dripping clothes reaching their ears.

"…Back in graduation day… the last day of my junior high…" Kageyama broke the silence. Mashumaro blinked, looking up at him again. She wasn't dreaming. She could have sworn she heard Kageyama's voice crack.

 _His voice cracked. His deep, strong, and determined voice_ _ **cracked**_ _._

Her mouth was left open, as she watched him try to keep his face serious. "… As I was waiting for my parents to pick me up from school… I watched everyone say goodbye to one another with hugs, friends of all kinds…" He was already mumbling, but Mashumaro tried her best to listen carefully. "That day… I just sat on my seat, waiting for someone to do the same to me, as I silently watched all of them."

Mashumaro abruptly stopped in her tracks, but Kageyama kept going. She observed as he walked ahead of her, stopping when she finally couldn't see his face.

"… That was the day I realized I had no one."

His hands balled up into fists, his nails slowly and tenderly digging holes into his rough, calloused palms. "Damn it… even the bastard Tsukishima had Yamaguchi back then… I even saw Hinata play happily with his former team mates during my game against him… so how come I had to be alone, dammit?" He knew it was rhetorical. He knew the answer to the question. It's simply because he had no idea how to keep a person or how to express himself openly.

And Mashumaro realized that volleyball is not the only thing inside Kageyama's mind.

"There was no one there. _Not a single one_. On my last day of junior high, with only a ball on-hand, I went to the gym with _no one_ and practiced with _no one_. There was _no one_ there for me except volleyball." His voice was breaking all over, and Mashumaro's tears were back on her cheeks falling from her brown eyes. "Is that why you were the egocentric king? Because you had _no one_ to believe in but yourself?"

Her question was the last straw. She may not know it, but Kageyama's eyes were now brimming with the salty water he wished she wouldn't see. "B-But I kept going!" His stutter was weak, but Mashumaro still noticed it. "That's why, you… you have to keep going!" His back was still turned towards her. "Every time I see or hear about Tsukishima, I get pissed off! But that's another story! YOU!" He turned around, a bunch of his tears spurting out of his eyes and down to the ground. His teeth were grinding against each other and his index finger was pointed at her.

Mashumaro inwardly gasped when she saw his face.

"You! I don't know why you keep following that beanpole around! But no matter what the reason, you have to keep going! Y-You have Ishikawa with you! Unlike me… I had no one. That's why if I could do it alone, you could do it better with a friend!" His voice was getting louder, as he was trying to yell to hide the pain he feels inside. Mashumaro stepped forward, placing back his tuxedo over his head, hiding the roots of his ebony hair.

She smiled lightly at him. "Are you crying because you were alone in junior high… or are you crying because Hirari went home without you? You're like a kid getting left behind by his mother in a supermarket." She teased, resulting in a glare from the raven boy. "She's not my mother." He muttered, frowning and rubbing his eyes to get rid of the annoying tears. "And I'm not crying, dammit! Men don't cry!" Mashumaro was surprised that he still had the energy to complain.

"But boys do. And you're still a boy, starting to ignite the flames in your heart." Mashumaro's words were so deep, Kageyama got puzzled. "If she's not your mother, then what is she to you?" She asked, not expecting him to answer so quickly, confidently, and with no signs of being appalled.

"I want to be the setter of her heart and would like to stay in her court as long as I can."

* * *

 _Translation: "I want my love to give life to her heartbeat and would like to stay in her life as long as I can."_

This time, for real, he was sure that he never wanted to be alone again.


	17. Chapter 17 The Color Of Jealousy

The cultural festival finally came to its end. Several students went to school on a Saturday to volunteer for clean-up day. As for Mashumaro, she was lucky that she was able to control her fall and that she didn't hit any sharp rocks this time around. And she was also lucky that she fell down the deeper part, knowing that landing on the shallow part will get her hospitalized for a long time once more.

She was content with finally having to be able to be brave enough to open her eyes.

But in the end, she had to lie to Hirari and the latter ended up believing that she got showered by a water sprinkler on her way home. The girl even cried because she blamed herself. It took Mashumaro approximately two hours to convince Hirari that she wasn't hurt anywhere, although she did get a cold and was advised for a check-up, just in case she was injured anywhere because of the impact of the river on her frail body(without Hirari knowing about it, of course). For that reason, she decided to stay in bed until she gets better.

Of course… she also never told Hirari that she met Kageyama along the way.

"Please refrain from taking a video of me with the camera." Mashumaro didn't even need to avert her gaze from the book she was reading to know that her friend was holding out a camera in front of her bed. She adjusted the warm towel on her forehead and clutched the blanket closer to her chest. "I don't think it's a good idea to read while lying down." Hirari's mouth formed a mischievous cat smile, refusing to stop the recording. It was rare for Mashumaro to catch an infection or virus, so it was an event that needed to be stored in the 'memory bank', which is the video camera.

Mashumaro looked up at her with a serious expression. That was Hirari's cue to stop recording. "… When you agreed to go on a date with Kageyama… were you sincere or were you just too shy to decline?" When Mashumaro's question was lifted out of her thoughts, Hirari was caught off-guard. "What do you mean?" She asked, tying her hair in a ponytail and getting ready to go to school for clean-up day. It was unusual for Mashumaro to push into people's emotions.

Mashumaro had always been the type of person to just leave it to the direct answers she receives. She doesn't insist or push people into revealing what they're thinking of. But today was sort of different.

"Because you always agree to people even though you don't wanna do it." Mashumaro reasoned out, eyes fixed to the horror book she was reading. She had always been fascinated with books that have mind-boggling plot twists and horror was one of the only genres which could satisfy her need for a heart-stopping storyline and fantasy. Of course, books about magic and ancient civilizations were also her kind of literature. She loved reading creepypastas over the internet, too. Hirari never questioned her friend's taste in everything. Her likes have always been way too different from the way she acts.

Hirari scowled at the book cover. "Stop scowling at the horror book. You'll scare it." Mashumaro immediately commented when she noticed. Hirari's scowl only worsened. It was ironic for an innocent girl to scare a _horror_ book of all things. "I said yes because I wanted to. He was all embarrassed and I can tell it took all of his pent-up courage to do something like that." She finally answered.

"He's a lonely boy." Mashumaro's immediate response puzzled Hirari. "So… coming to Karasuno is probably a big blessing for him." She followed, smiling at Hirari as if she knew everything about Kageyama. Of course, she didn't. "He has a pure heart. Seeing someone like him get hurt is painful enough. You don't even have to feel his pain to know." Mashumaro's words tenderly dug into Hirari's soft heart, rendering her speechless. "Even if you're my friend, I wouldn't like it if you just said 'yes' to him out of pity. You gotta learn how to love him."

Hirari bit her lip. Did she really just say 'yes' out of pity? So that would mean that she had no right to run away from the party. Then again, what was right and what was wrong? She didn't know anymore. And she can't believe that Mashumaro, queen of denseness, was lecturing her about 'feelings' – a thing that Mashumaro never takes seriously.

Or maybe she does take it seriously, which is why she's saying these.

"But since you got hurt when you heard their conversation, I'm sure you didn't pity him. Oh, by the way… look, it's raining outside." Sometimes, Mashumaro's bad habit of straying out of the topic is sometimes, just _sometimes_ , really useful.

Hirari went out of Mashumaro's bedroom and closed the door behind her. She slumped against it, sighing. The sky seemed like it was crying for her. "… I'm too young to know how to love him."

Meanwhile, back inside the room, Mashumaro stood up from the bed and opened her closet quietly. She stared at a certain article of clothing, a light bulb lighting up between the lobes of her brain(metaphorically, not literally). A devious smile was plastered on her face.

"I'm sorry, Kageyama. Hirari." She muttered.

If there was one thing that can bring out a person's inner feelings, it's jealousy. Mashumaro browsed through her old works and love stories, thinking of executing her story's plots herself. She can't write the future, but she surely can make it happen.

* * *

Hirari had never felt so nervous entering the gym. Okay, maybe she was always nervous, but her entrance at this time is uncalled for. She's not even here because of the Media Club's job; she was here to apologize for causing a scene and probably hurting their feelings and reputation because of her stupid sensitivity. She braced herself, raising her hand to knock, but the door swiftly opened before she could even do anything.

She looked way up, cursing the person for being so tall. "Oh, good morning, Ishikawa. Here to visit your Royal Highness?" Tsukishima smirked, intimidating her. Hirari wanted to hit his head with the broom she was holding. "Huh, your fashion sense is not too bad." She teased back; staring at the plain gray shirt Tsukishima was wearing, not to mention the shorts. The sleeves of his shirt were wet with sweat, probably because the volleyball club started fixing their gym early. "You're one to talk." Tsukishima chuckled, eyeing her from head to toe. Because it was clean-up day, students were advised to bring home clothes with them and that's exactly what Hirari did.

She didn't want to waste her time exchanging insults with the blonde so she frowned and lowered her voice. "Let me through." She said in a pleading tone. Tsukishima raised an eyebrow at the change of mood. "Hey! Tsuki! Oh… Ishikawa?" Yamaguchi ran toward them with a mop and a bottle of water, accidentally interrupting their conversation. "Ishikawa's here!" Sugawara announced, much to Hirari's desperate signals, not wanting to get _all_ their attention. Daichi nodded, understanding Sugawara's purpose for the announcement. "Well, it's time you boys do what you ought to do." The captain threateningly placed his hands on the shoulders of both Tanaka and Nishinoya – the main masterminds of the plan.

Hirari quickly bowed down before anyone could say another word to her and scare her. She didn't want run with her tail between her legs once again. "I'M SORRY!" To her surprise, everyone said it with her in unison.

They all blinked, looking at one another in a pattern, waiting for one of them to say something after the awkward apologies. "Um, well, you see, about forcing Kageyama to, you know…" It was rare for Daichi to act so uneasy. He was wriggling his fingers while moving his arms robotically with a blank stare, as if he was a machine that's slowly running on low battery. "W-W-Wait, no! I'm sorry for, um, you know, running away, because… well…" Hirari was doing the same. Everyone else gawked at them in misperception.

"Ishikawa?"

The deep voice from behind startled Hirari. She turned her head, unprepared and nervous, and saw Kageyama standing there with a rather surprised expression with Hinata beside him, grinning widely. The shorter boy was obviously relieved that Hirari was back. "Ishikawa, you're ba—"

Hinata's voice was immediately overshadowed by a louder and more high-pitched voice from the side. "Tobioooo!" The familiar voice called out to Kageyama, surprising everyone. They all peeked out of the gym to check.

To Hirari's surprise, Mashumaro was standing there with a tuxedo slung on her arm, waving happily at Kageyama. "Is it just me or did she just call Kageyama by his first name!?" Tanaka pointed out.

As Mashumaro ran towards Kageyama, she glanced swiftly at Hirari, preparing for the worst. She felt like the worst friend in the universe for what she's trying to do. "I had fun _last night_! Here, I washed your tuxedo for you! Thanks for letting me, um, wear it while I'm all wet." It was a good thing she insisted on bringing his tuxedo home so she could recover from her guilt of making it wet.

Everyone was beyond shocked upon hearing her words. "W-W-What!?" They all yelled in unison. The second-years were already slapping themselves simultaneously. The next thing shocked them even more, startling all of them out of reality. "Oh, Maro-chan." Kageyama calmly walked toward her. And smiled. _He smiled._

"' **MARO-CHAN!?'** " The rest of them, except Hirari, Tsukishima and perhaps, Ukai, yelled once again. Ignoring what seems to be a rather heavy atmosphere, the two densest people in the universe went towards each other and the area around them appeared to be livelier than the rest, for they were happily looking into each other's eyes. They both supposedly sucked at eye contact, which made Hirari cringe a bit.

And it also made her wonder _why_ she cringed at the sight of her best friend and… probably the 'guy who mistook her for a crow mascot', staring at each other with no signs of being awkward at all. Was Kageyama really just all that to Hirari? She was beyond appalled at her own thoughts, biting her lip as Mashumaro gave him his tuxedo.

They all decided to forget about it when Kageyama decided to return to the gym, unmindful of all the glares he received. Mashumaro also sneezed, revealing to everyone that she had a cold and yet, she still came today just to return the article of clothing. That fact, yet again, made Hirari cringe. She knew how lazy Mashumaro was and she knew it would take hours of persuading to get her to come to school when she is not even needed in the clean-up activity.

So why did Mashumaro go to that length just to return something of Kageyama's? And what _did_ they do last night?

* * *

Yamaguchi was always worried about Tsukishima, and by the looks of it, the blonde was even more agitated than usual. The freckled boy watched as Tsukishima was able to block _all_ spikes of the other team. _All_ of them. Ukai sweat-dropped. Even Kageyama and Hinata weren't able to get composed after seeing the Karasuno wall take the game a little bit _too_ seriously, and it was something he didn't do. Because of the growing tension, they ended up calling for a timeout.

Tsukishima didn't mind it if everyone found him really strange. He thought it was a fair trade, since he also found it irritating when the oddball duo requested for a practice session after clean-up. In the end, he didn't get to come home early because of that. Yachi hesitantly handed him a jug of water with trembling hands, and she squealed on the inside when he gripped the jug and took it out of her hold. Upon seeing Yachi's reaction, it was the last straw for Yamaguchi.

The freckled boy was the only one who was brave enough to talk to Tsukishima in a state where he doesn't want to talk to anyone, after all. "Tsuki." His voice was barely audible, but it was enough to capture Tsukishima's attention. "Um… is something bothering you?" Yamaguchi was always a little bit too sweet and concerned, and Tsukishima may not admit it, but his friend's antics somehow makes him calm down.

Tsukishima was about to open his mouth, when Hinata's voice distracted him from the conversation. "WHAT!? YOU'RE GOING TO KAJI'S HOUSE LATER!?" Kageyama's hand covered the ginger's mouth, causing muffled shouts of surprise. "Be quiet, you moron!" Kageyama hissed, looking around to see if anyone heard. Tsukishima glanced away quickly before Kageyama could meet his gaze.

Yamaguchi just stood there with pursed lips, his eyes focused on the shaking grip of Tsukishima on the water jug.

* * *

"Where is that girl?" Hirari frowned upon checking every nook and corner of the school. Mashumaro had a terrible habit of roaming around. She stomped along, recalling the memory of Kageyama smiling. Her lips curved, thinking that it was such a gentle and child-like smile, but then she remembered that the smile wasn't for her. It was for her best friend. She grabbed her video camera from her bag and scanned the surroundings, thinking of giving the video clip the title 'Find the missing marshmallow'.

Her camera caught sight of something orange down the corner near the stairs. She looked up from the screen and saw Hinata hiding in a corner stealthily. "Hinata?" Her voice captured the boy's attention. "What are you—" She couldn't say another word when Hinata suddenly jumped at her and covered her mouth with his hand. "Shh! Shh!" The boy panicked, wishing that no one else heard Hirari's voice. When he thought the coast was clear enough, he went back to his spot and made hand motions for Hirari to come closer.

Confused and scared, Hirari crept to Hinata's spot, peeking into the scene he was staring at. Her eyes widened when she saw Mashumaro clinging to Kageyama's arm and she was kissing his cheek. _Shit_.

Also, Yachi was just behind them, silent tears streaming down her cheeks as she frantically tried to wave her hands in defense for some reason. "T-That looks like some sort of love triangle… hopefully not." Hirari didn't realize she was mentioning her thoughts out loud. Hinata was gritting his teeth. "How come all the girls seem to like Kageyama nowadays!?" He complained.

Meanwhile, a blonde and freckled boy stopped by the stairs when they witnessed the same scene. "… I forgot something." Tsukishima quickly said, before going back to where they came from. Yamaguchi just gaped at the scene, slowly trying to figure out what was going on.

* * *

 _Minutes later…_

"W-wait! Where are we going, Kaji?" Yachi's eyes were already in swirls, trying to keep up with Mashumaro's fast pace. "Are you sure Kageyama went this way!?" The latter asked while still running, struggling to catch her breath. It didn't take long until they made a turn to the stairs and found Kageyama eating a meat bun. "TOBIO! HEY!" Mashumaro called out.

Kageyama swiftly turned around. Unfortunately, Yachi accidentally bumped into him, the meat bun falling from his hands from the impact. "AH! I'M SO SORRY!" Yachi's eyes started getting wet, scared of Kageyama's scowl and what he could possibly do to her because of what she did. "I-I'LL GET YOU ANOTHER ONE! I SWEAR! DON'T GRIND ME! I'M… I'M NOT A TASTY MEAT BUN!" She waved her hands in front of her in defense, droplets of water streaming down her face.

Before the boy could tell her that it was fine, a complete opposite to his normal scowling face, Mashumaro grabbed his arm for him to lean to his side. "You're too tall! Lean down for a sec!" She demanded, as she dragged his arm further down and until she was finally able to reach his ear. If Yachi didn't know any better, it looked like she was kissing him.

"It's probably suspicious if you go to my house later! Maybe we should try baking in someone else's house?"

"I-Is bread really the only thing Ishikawa likes the most? Let's just buy some."

"Don't be like that, Tobio. She likes it when people make an effort, too!"

Yachi blinked. She looked around, but saw no one, but she knew there were other people witnessing the scene with her. She swore she felt the atmosphere turn into a slight yellow-green transitioning into dark green for a while there. It made her shudder; thinking that if people's emotions showed themselves with colors, then shades of green wouldn't be nice to look at anymore.


	18. Extra Chapter: Muffled Kisses

**December 22, 2015**

 **Happy birthday, Kageyama Tobio! Stay awkward and adorable please.**

 **Nah, you're still awesome. :3 Yaaaaaay!**

 **This is an extra chapter for Kageyama's birthday so it doesn't really affect the storyline or how the fic is going. It's just you know, a holiday one-shot. Anyway, happy holidays and let's all greet the youngest member of the Karasuno volleyball club a happy birthday!**

* * *

Kageyama clicked his tongue in annoyance as his cheeks turned white due to the biting cold of the winter breeze. His footsteps padded on the gentle snow by his feet. To him, winter was sort of a burden, since it limits his movements as an athlete and the cold prevents him from wearing thin clothes.

Wearing thick clothes wasn't a problem, if only they were easy to move around in. Wearing thin clothes or plain shirts was out of the question though. He did not want to get frostbitten while forming in a set-up in their every practice game. He looked up at the sky, scowling, although it was possibly normal for his face to scowl every time he looks at something.

He was only here for the sole reason that Hinata called him over for something, insisting that the whole team watch a movie tonight because 'Kageyama deserves a celebration even if he's mean'. Practice ended with Daichi having to drag the arguing oddball duo out of the court and into the storage room to grab mops for clean-up. The scene's bitter taste was seasoned with Tsukishima's constant aggressive comments and topped with the cherry-flavored words of Sugawara as he attempted to calm the bickering first-years down.

" _Tonight! In front of the local mall at 7:30! Don't be late!"_

Hinata's annoying voice never ceased to echo inside the setter's mind, his eyebrow twitching upon remembering the demands of the other half of the freak quick. He muttered a low curse, his lips quivering from the cold. How he longed to get to bed immediately and snuggle into his blanket to warm his freezing shoulders.

And he may not admit it but he really thought it would be nice if there was someone who'd cradle him in warm arms as he dozes off.

He wasn't really the touchy type when it comes to his family. His mother had a cute habit of hugging his neck with one arm and ruffling his hair with her other hand as she sniffed into his shampoo while he's eating the breakfast she made for an athlete and teased him for being such a big boy already. She even pretended to wipe a tear from the corner of her eyes because her only child was growing. Kageyama would just scoff and not say a word, his cheeks flushing, embarrassed that he was still being babied by probably the only female who loved him.

Well, she _was_ the only female who did until…

"Kageyama!" A lively tune rung into his ears. He looked over to the direction, surprised at the plot twist.

It wasn't Hinata. It was Ishikawa Hirari.

"Hi! Have you seen Hinata? He texted me, telling me that he wanted us to meet up here." She told him, awaiting his response eagerly with an excited grin plastered on her face. Kageyama fought the urge to leave his mouth hanging open. He shifted his scarf so it could cover his mouth, his eyes darting back and forth from his feet to her face. Even though the weather was baring its fangs at them, her cheeks were still flushed and her lips tinted pink. She blew into her mittens, making Kageyama's face heat up at her attempt to keep herself warmer. It looked adorable.

Clearing his throat, he opened his phone to check the time. _8:03pm._ He shoved the machine back into his pocket and grunted. _Where is that dumbass?_

That's when a light bulb lit up in his head, realization dawning upon him; depriving his face of the little amount of blood left to keep his head warm. His face became even paler. He looked at Hirari, who was just innocently checking from left to right, worry creasing over her features. Kageyama only knew one thing – they've been set up. _Dumbass Hinata._

What now?

"… He's probably not coming." He reluctantly said, his first words to her for this day traveling through his scarf, leaving it muffled when it reached the girl's ears. She looked up at his height, widening her eyes. "O-Oh. How do you know?" She asked. Kageyama bit his lips, shoving his hands aggressively in his pocket. He licked his chapped lips to moisten them, taking notice of her full, plump ones. Before he could even think of anything to say, she started giggling on the spot. "It's really cold out, Kageyama. We should go inside. It's such a waste if Hinata's not coming, though." She scanned his clothes. _He must have taken long to dress up, judging from how thick those are. He must be really cold._ With a sigh, she hesitantly grabbed his strong wrist, seeing as he is making no move, and dragged him into the building.

Her cheeks were really hot, despite the cold air enveloping them. "Ishikawa." She heard him say her name. "Yes?" She said without looking back, knowing that he was lazily dragging his feet off the ground. _Poor boy, his feet probably already froze to his previous spot._ "Do you wanna go watch a movie?" He tried to ignore his beating heart, his fingers trembling both from the cold and her answer. Hirari stopped in her tracks, her grip on Kageyama's wrist loosening. She appeared to be deep in thought.

Finally looking back at him, she laughed. "Yep! There's this new movie Hinata told me about! He even lent me the tickets for both of us, saying it would get lost if he was the one who kept it… since he's not here…" She stammered, her face heating up again. "Well… I guess you could take the other one, yes?" She dug deep into her shoulder bag and brought out two pieces of paper and waved it in front of Kageyama's face.

He grunted. "I take that as a yes." She smiled.

Kageyama figured that there must be a reason why Hinata chose the movies for a set-up date. He recalled Tanaka telling him that the movie room was dark and screamed 'privacy' all over it, which is why couples take that chance to hold hands or be sweet without anyone judging them. Of course, Kageyama was never really the type to do something inappropriate in a dark, public place. Scratch that, he was _never_ the type to do anything inappropriate _at all_.

He remembered how cold and chapped his lips are compared to her full, pinkish ones. He blushed at the thought.

* * *

He was strangely uncomfortable. _Kisses are done by couples inside the theatres… so…_

He tried shaking his head to avoid the thought, but he only ended up stopping once his gaze drops to her face. Her eyes were like saucers, the theatre screen reflecting in them, as she focused on the movie. A piece of popcorn was dangling in her mouth. Kageyama snorted, pulling up his scarf to cover his face again. Thankfully, she didn't hear it.

This was his chance and he knew it. Maybe he can finally let out his feelings if he did _it_? Then again, what if he gets slapped? He groaned, completely forgetting about the movie. He silently fidgeted on his seat, trying to find the timing. Setting the ball to his teammates were always timed perfectly, so why was kissing a girl so hard for him? Not to mention, he was able to toss the ball a far distance away from his hands accurately, so why was tossing a kiss to a girl so freaking hard?

He swallowed. His throat was still dry. _I solemnly swear that I am up to no good._ Ignore the Harry Potter reference, his manliness is at stake right now!

His face turned towards her again, leaning closer. His grip on the chair's side was tightening, almost enough to crush it with his hand. Meanwhile, Hirari was about to pop a piece of popcorn into her mouth as Kageyama inched closer.

The piece of popcorn fell.

"Oh, what a waste." She mumbled, distracting Kageyama from his main objective. Humiliated, he withdrew his face as quickly as possible when Hirari stooped down to pick up the piece she dropped, oblivious to what was supposed to happen to her. Kageyama sat back properly on his chair, accidentally hitting the crook of his neck at the back of the said chair. His right hand clutched his pained body part, a rain of curses being muttered right after. Hirari sat back on her chair after picking up what she dropped.

The movie went on with Kageyama not paying attention to the screen the whole time. He absolutely had no idea what was going on-screen, while Hirari was incredibly focused on the villainous human trying to kill the helpless alien stranded on the planet. He tried again, never losing his morale. After all, he never gave up on volleyball, why give up on a kiss that could probably give him the same winning feeling he remembers quite well when he perfects a toss? The feeling he's aiming for right now was probably better, too. He inched closer once more.

Only to be interrupted when Hirari and the other audience let out screams.

Kageyama jumped back, covering his ears. Hirari's high-pitched scream did wonders to his eardrums. He glared at the movie screen, figuring out the source of the audience's reaction. The face of the villainous human was being distorted, creating a horror scene. It was even shot on close-up to purposely scare the watchers.

The movie was coming to an end and Kageyama still didn't know what the story was all about. He was busy pondering about his next move. _Dammit_. He couldn't help it but curse at his own timing. He was now glaring at the screen, wishing that Hinata should have picked a better movie. A romance movie should have done the trick, but Hinata most likely knew that Kageyama is unappreciative of too much sugary scenes. Facing Hirari again, he knew it was his last chance before they leave the darkness of the theatres and the privacy they have right now.

Gulping, he bit his chapped lips, wincing at the pain he was bringing to himself. Gripping the handles of the seat once more, he leaned closer. Now that the credits were starting to roll across the screen, Hirari was no longer interested in what she's seeing. This made her look back at Kageyama, startled when his face was just inches from hers. She tried backing away, but the boy's fingers unconsciously made their way to her forearm, brushing across her skin tenderly, though barely. The electrifying impulses of his calloused fingertips sent chills to her spine, her body refusing to listen to her mind's commands.

Their lips were only centimeters apart, and Kageyama was slowly closing his eyes. Hirari's lips were trembling with a feeling she didn't know what to call. Her shoulders stiffened, her eyes still trying to register what was going on.

… Then the lights turned on.

Both of them blinked at the ruined mood of the moment. Kageyama hissed, backing away and rubbing his eyes, adjusting his sight to the change of brightness of their surroundings. Hirari looked up. "Oh." She reacted. "We should go."

Kageyama was really pissed. He knew he shouldn't be, but he still was. He now concluded that a sci-fi slash horror movie was not a good genre for couples to watch.

* * *

"Have you seen the villain? Who knew he was actually an alien, too!? That was a crazy plot twist, like, that caught me off-guard!" Hirari blabbed about nothing but the movie the whole time they were walking home. Unfortunately, Kageyama could only dumbly listen to her squeals since he forgot about the movie the whole time they were in the theatres. He lowered his face and lifted his scarf. It draped over his closed mouth. His eyebrows were furrowed although it wasn't because he was annoyed with her. He was still annoyed at Hinata's bad taste in movies. The ginger spiker probably doesn't watch movies often. He probably just picked it just because it was _new_ and _popular_. And Hinata thinks _everything_ is cool. How could someone just pick a movie for a date just because it's _cool_?

It didn't take long for them to reach Hirari's house. "You better go. Your parents must be worried sick." He nudged her with his hand, finally noticing that she was gripping his coat the whole time. He didn't know that the girl had a hard time catching up with his fast walking pace, so she ended up grabbing hold of his coat to keep up with him. She looked down at her feet, letting go of him. Kageyama heard her mumble something but he couldn't quite hear what it was except for the words 'time', 'together' and 'short'.

"So… yeah." She let out a disappointed sigh. Kageyama blinked twice, thinking that he must be imagining the slight sadness in her tone. He watched her walk away, mentally cursing himself for being a sucker in love. As Hirari walked to her front porch, she felt something cold melt against her warm cheeks. She shivered, wiping it off her cheek.

It was then that she realized that it was snowing.

Kageyama marveled at the sight of the tiny feather-like things falling from the sky. He slowly exhaled, his eyes taking in the beauty of white snowflakes. Hirari looked behind her, their gazes locking in. Kageyama saw warmth in her eyes, making him remember how he snuggles his sheets to his face when he sleeps during cold winter nights.

"By the way, Kageyama… happy birthday. I hope I was enough to make you happy today, well… sorry if Hinata couldn't come… I surely wanted to see you smile today, but I guess I failed." Hirari's meek voice interrupted his trance. She stuck her tongue out playfully and laughed, rubbing her head cutely. Without thinking, he walked towards her and let his hands fall on the sides of her shoulders. Hirari inhaled sharply. "Ishikawa… you made me happy. Thank you."

With quivering lips trying to smile, he leaned in without hesitation with his eyes closed, prepared for rejection and a slap. However, Hirari made no move, her eyes studying his nervous face before she felt something brush against her lips. It was chaste and warm. And funny.

Because he missed.

 _Shit_. Kageyama inwardly cursed when he realized that he forgot to pull down his scarf and their lips ended up getting separated by the stupid fabric dangling over his mouth. He pulled away, his hand covering his face in a flustered manner. He could still feel the way her eyelashes brushed against his cheek as she blinked during the "kiss".

He bowed down, trying to avoid humiliation. "S-Sorry! Thank you for accompanying me, Ishikawa! See you!" He said, skidding away from her house, panicking out of embarrassment and awkwardness. Hirari's fingers lingered over her lips, remembering the feeling of warmth and love over the thin fabric that was once there. A smile tugged at her face. The winter wasn't so bad, after all.


	19. Chapter 18 Why

" _I have an important errand to go off to! See ya, Jiru!"_

Hirari fumbled with her thoughts, deafening the calls of Yamaguchi even though they were just walking side by side as they cleaned the classroom. "Ishikawa?" Yamaguchi finally waved a hand in front of her face, snapping her from the trance she was in. She looked up; her cheeks tinted with a pink color, and came face to face with a worried Yamaguchi to her side. "Um… you're spacing out." His sheepish voice prevented her from freaking out in alarm. She looked at the mop she was holding. She could have sworn she was just mopping alongside him. "You suddenly stopped mopping the floor and stayed that way for a minute." Yamaguchi answered her mind's question before she even had the chance to ask herself.

She didn't answer. Instead, she started swiping the mop on the floor with an embarrassed blush, not caring if what she's doing even made any sense. "You can tell me, if you need someone to talk to. But it's alright if you don't want to talk about it." Yamaguchi always had a way to calm down people back to serenity and it's probably why Tsukishima even accepted him as a friend. There was something about the meek boy that reminded everyone of the spring ocean. Hirari stopped mopping to glance at him, still unsure if what she's about to do was right. "It's about Maro." She finally said, biting her lip, awaiting his response.

"Oh, Kaji?" To her surprise, Yamaguchi seemed pretty normal. "She confuses me, too." He chuckled lightly, standing up straight with one hand on his hips and a mop on the other, proudly looking over to the spots he cleaned. "Why?" Even though Hirari was the main reason for their current conversation, she was still the first one to ask. Yamaguchi wiped off the sweat from his forehead, his eyes gazing around the room, stopping when he found Tsukishima wiping the long windows effortlessly. It was agitating and tiring for the blonde, since they had to clean the gym, practice, and clean the classroom all in one day.

Yamaguchi pursed his lips and smiled nervously. "She stopped talking to Tsuki." He admitted to Hirari. "And now she's suddenly going after Kageyama." Upon mentioning a certain name, Hirari felt her heart drop from her chest and she didn't know why. She knew it. She knew all the facts since she had seen too much already, but the pain was indescribable when someone actually pointed it out. "Does Tsuki like Maro?" Hirari was undecided about calling the blonde by his nickname, but she did it, anyway. After all, they were friends now, weren't they?

"I don't know." Yamaguchi sighed. "Why?" He followed with a question. Hirari clicked her tongue and proceeded with mopping the floor even though the floor was possibly shiny clear by now because they've been mopping on the same spot since the start of their conversation. "He made up an excuse to hug her before. I caught it all on my video camera." She told him. "Oh. I saw that. It seemed like he was just teasing her, though." He answered.

"… You think a distant guy like Tsukishima Kei would even hug a girl just for the fun of it?" Hirari smirked, challenging the logic Yamaguchi was playing upon. This made Yamaguchi swallow in order to soothe his dry throat. Has he really been just blinded by Tsukishima's teasing? If he doesn't ask Tsukishima about it, he knew deep inside that the blonde boy would definitely keep on hurting himself in denial.

Kageyama had a hard time expressing his emotions, but he was honest and passionate. Tsukishima knows exactly what he's feeling but he's always running away from it. From that description, it was easy to tell who's harder to deal with.

"Maybe so." Yamaguchi lied, since he knew it himself. He knew that he's always just defending Tsukishima's bad habit of running away from attachment and concern. "Say, Ishikawa… why don't you go ask Kaji about her actions? You've been friends for years… it may be not that hard, right?"

And with that question, Hirari knew what to respond with. Again, she knew she was being a jerk, but it felt like the right thing to do. "That goes the same for you and Tsukishima, right?"

They both stared at each other and burst into a fit of laughter. "… Yeah. I guess we should go talk to them."

* * *

Hirari still wondered about her conversation with Yamaguchi. They agreed to meet up at the waiting shed a few blocks from Mashumaro's house. Taking a glimpse on her watch, she rocked back and forth, pressuring on the balls of her feet as she stood there, bored out of her life. "Ishikawa!" She looked up to find the source of the gentle voice and saw Yamaguchi dragging an uninterested Tsukishima. She blinked, her mind trying to think of the many reasons _why_ Tsukishima was being involved into something he had no business with. Again.

She pointed her index finger at the tall blonde questioningly with creased eyebrows. The tall man smirked in response. "If you keep scrunching up your face like that, you'll get old faster." Hirari wasn't sure if what he said was a compliment or a taunt. Yamaguchi came in between them, gently grabbing Hirari's shoulders to distract her from Tsukishima's snide remarks. "Let's go. We're going to talk to them, remember? I brought Tsuki along so they could also settle things between themselves." He whispered with his butterfly voice. She hesitated, stealing a glance to Tsukishima. The blonde was observing them and it won't take long until he figures out where he was being dragged to. She didn't want to ask about what Yamaguchi told him that made him agree with going somewhere unknown.

She nodded, taking her phone from her pocket reluctantly.

 _[To: Marshmallow]_

 _I'm gonna go for a visit. Leave the door open._

* * *

Smoke covered the entire house, coaxing coughs from the two people as they fell to the floor. "Great, Tobio! Just great!" She hissed at him as she crawled to the oven, fanning off the black air from clouding her sight. "We almost blew up my house. Your cooking skills are definitely beyond knowledge." She could barely open her eyes. The dust and smoke were hurting her nose and irises. "Y-You told me to maximize the heat!" Kageyama said in between coughs, his hands searching on the ground for something, anything, to repel the smoke.

Mashumaro finally found her potholder mitts after aimlessly running her hands across the table, knocking a few ingredients and utensils off in the process. "That wasn't what I meant! Great job in trying to bake something as simple as macarons!" It's been a while since the girl had ever felt frustrated. Usually, she would just smile and leave other people to their mistakes. This time, she was acting all pissed at Kageyama.

It was something only a human would feel, and she was slightly glad that she felt frustrated after a long while.

But, of course, this wasn't the time to even _feel_ glad. Putting on her mitts, she took the baking pan from the oven as Kageyama opened the window to let out smoke, covering his nose while doing so. As soon as everything was almost clear in the kitchen, Mashumaro stared at the black _things_ left on the baking pan, her reaction indescribable. She didn't know anyone who could fail miserably in baking bread, _bread for goodness' sake_ , until she met Kageyama. "Ugh. I smell awful and burnt. Let me take a shower. Stay here. **Don't** touch anything." She had never been so stern and she wondered why. Unless it's with Hirari.

As she walked into the bathroom near the living room, she knew she was slowly opening up her human side to the people who get close to her and Kageyama Tobio was one of those people now. Was it a good thing or a bad thing? She always adored her happy side every time she smiles at everyone or just simply helps them in any way she can with no signs of hatred or annoyance whatsoever. She did not like talking to people or huge crowds, but with little company, she was comfortable.

She sighed, turning on the shower, trickles of water forming a liquid cape all over her body.

Meanwhile, Kageyama was still fanning off some of the smoky air left in the house. It was then that he heard running footsteps from the hallway. His attention averted from the open window, slightly panicking. He recalled Mashumaro telling him that Hirari was coming. He absolutely did not want the girl to find him in the pitiful state he was in. Looking around for somewhere to hide, he skidded across the kitchen floor, his feet slipping on a puddle of bread batter that Mashumaro must have knocked from the table while searching for her mitts in the midst of smoke. He fell on the floor butt-first, a curse escaping from his mouth.

The door slammed open. "Maro-chan! Are you o- _oohhhhh_ …" Hirari quickly changed her statement when she found the mess the kitchen was in and the only culprit on the scene was a black-haired 180cm tall guy on the floor, batter staining his clothes and bangs. Yamaguchi peeked from behind Hirari, unable to decipher the disaster right before his very eyes.

Kageyama's whole face heated up. "I-Ishikawa! I, uhh…" He stammered, not knowing how to explain everything. He was afraid that the girl might think he was playing around in the kitchen. "W-We saw smoke coming from the window on the way here so…" Yamaguchi started explaining to avoid the awkward silence.

Hirari looked around, a crime scene forming in her mind that she couldn't help but investigate. She recognized the ingredients and the differently-colored batters in their own individual bowls. "… Macarons?" She guessed, looking at Kageyama to check if her hunch was correct. A flinch from Kageyama's flustered state was enough to confirm her suspicions.

Suddenly, a laugh broke out from the girl, confusing both Yamaguchi and Kageyama. "… Oh, you." She muttered, stepping closer to the boy. Kageyama was a bit unsure of what was supposed to happen now, his eyes turning to Yamaguchi, 'help' screaming all over from those dark blue orbs. The girl kneeled down, wiping off the batter staining his pale cheeks and dripping from his bangs. "Don't frown at me, Kageyama. I'd have to remind you that you ignored me all day." She laughed, feeling a bit hurt now that the words finally left her lips.

"S-Sorry… I wanted to surprise you, with, uh…" His stuttering low voice was even made more adorable when he grunted before even finishing his sentence. He lowered his head, his frown worsening. Deep inside, Hirari knew that a worsening frown meant only one thing – he was embarrassed.

"… You wanted to bake for me? But… why? I mean, I saw Maro kissing your cheek and, um…" The girl found it hard to string her words together, emotions flowing out faster than sentences. Kageyama's face scrunched up but he put his frown back on as quickly as possible. "… I HEARD THAT. YOU SNORTED! We'll clean up this mess, okay?" Hirari reacted quickly much to his horror. They both looked into each other's eyes after that, her smile widening at him. Her eyes were so intense that Kageyama had to give up the staring contest.

A sigh escaped his mouth, as he bent down his head, letting her win him over just like that. "Hn."

Feeling as if he was invading their privacy, Yamaguchi left the room with a content smile. "Oi, Yamaguchi, where do you think you're going? Help us clean up."

* * *

Tsukishima was left in the living room, no sign of concern washing over his features. Since no one screamed, he concluded that there was no fire to begin with. That just deemed their effort to run into the house useless. He waited patiently for something to happen. He didn't even know whose house he was in, but he _did_ know that Mashumaro was in here somewhere. Yamaguchi was a bad liar and too obvious for Tsukishima's taste.

A numb feeling shot across his lower body due to sitting immediately on the couch after running forcibly, all because the two people with him were roughly dragging him as they ran with horrified facial expressions. "It was just smoke. Obviously, someone opened the window." He muttered a complaint before standing up to inspect the picture frames on the wall. He lazily glanced at each picture, realization casting all over his being when he realized that they were all pictures of Mashumaro growing up.

He dragged his right hand from his pocket to cover his nose as he let out a short chuckle upon seeing Mashumaro's awkward smiles in her childhood pictures. It was completely different from her beaming, sunlit smiles as of now. His personal favorite was the one where was playing with a ball made out of branches entangled together. He thought that she must have been in a mountain province for vacation judging from the surroundings and the ball she was playing with. Her hair was tied into two pigtails and her face was serious and… sullen. He liked it, anyway.

Just then, he heard singing. Raising his eyebrow, he thought he must be imagining things but he wasn't. There was a nice voice singing. He dragged his feet once again, trying to find where it was coming from until he led himself towards the bathroom door.

Tsukishima wasn't a pervert nor was he interested in women's budding bodies. He also didn't want to destroy the precious bath time the person was in, but he _was_ curious about the voice. He leaned in, pressing his ear against the door. That's when he recognized the voice. It was no mistake. Kaji Mashumaro had a soft singing voice.

He withdrew his head from the door, adjusting his eyeglasses and looking around to check if anyone saw his stupid actions. After finding no one, he went back to the couch and sat, waiting for the girl to emerge fully clothed. If she wasn't fully clothed, then it's her fault for leaving the house door open while taking a bath in the comfort room beside the living room.

After just a few minutes, at the corner of his eyes, he saw a girl drying her hair with the towel, still singing something. At the sight of him, the said girl jumped back, hitting her head on a shelf close to her. The blonde exhaled sharply and smirked playfully. He felt a tinge of pain hit his chest when the girl stared at him without a word and frowned. She would usually just smile at him and be annoying, but she didn't this time. Tsukishima fought the urge to bite his tongue in distress. He was feeling so mad over nothing.

To his surprise, a weight shifted on the other side of the couch. She had plopped herself next to him. He raised an eyebrow in amusement. Upon seeing his reaction, she scoffed. Narrowing his eyes at him for the first time, he could tell she was irritated. "This is _my_ couch, so I have every right to sit on it." He could feel poison dripping from her tongue as she spoke up. Tsukishima was about to retort, but decided otherwise.

One, she didn't talk to him for days and this is what she first tells him after giving him the cold shoulder. Two, she was a pissed woman and a pissed woman is never to be trifled with, even if it's a weird person like Mashumaro.

He watched her with wide eyes. Water was dripping from her wavy locks and she was struggling with her small hands to ruffle the towel against her hair. _This girl is hopeless_. Tsukishima hissed softly, closing off the space between them and his hands gripping the sides of the towel. "Seriously…" He complained, even though he did the action voluntarily. The girl didn't complain when he started drying her hair, not minding getting his hands wet over the silly action he started doing. His eyes were focused on the towel, and gazed down until they stopped on her lips, which was the only part of her face which was not covered by the towel at the moment. His hands slowed down their pace, his eyes fixed on her small lips.

He didn't even notice that he already stopped moving his hands after getting distracted by her slightly parted lips. "Tsk." The sound of annoyance came out of his lips as his hands slowly made their way to her ears, the towel fabric separating his palms from the lobes. He felt slightly defeated, closing his eyes and pressing his hands to her ears with the towel.

He leaned forward, resting his forehead on her own, their lips only inches apart. He spoke, leaving a ghost of his breath trail over Mashumaro's.

"Damn. Why am I so in love with you, Maro?"


	20. Extra Chapter: New Year Special

**HAPPY NEW YEAR!**

 **Sorry if all I write are special chapters. Writer's block is hard to overcome ;_;**

 **Yay!**

* * *

"HUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUG!"

Before Kageyama could react at the ear-piercing screeching voice, he was tackled from the chair to the wooden floor while in the midst of eating his dinner. He landed with a loud thud, a sign of the possible pain he would feel on his right shoulder any moment now, as a woman with silky black hair wrapped her arms around his head to protect his cranium from gaining injury from the fall. "M-Mom!" The distress could be clearly heard from Kageyama's voice even when his mouth was against his mother's sleeves.

His mother chuckled softly, not minding how her apron's stains rubbed against Kageyama's white shirt. She's going to have to wash that shirt tomorrow.

After the bearhug session, she sat on the floor and tilted her head to get a better view of her son's face; watching the said boy sit upright with his ever-permanent frown. "Now, now… you'll get wrinkles if you keep frowning like that, sweetie. Young people take their youth for granted. Oh, how I wish I would be able to prevent my forehead creases from appearing while I'm in my early twenties." The back of her hand found its way to her forehead, faking a look. "… Mom… you're almost forty." Kageyama commented, exercising his right arm to erase the pain. Falling on his side did a number on his body.

Suddenly, the woman stood up with arms crossed against her chest. "Oh, you! You should be getting ready for the festival, and you're just sitting there, eating dinner! Go invite your volleyball friends or your girlfriend out! Girls love to be taken out! You know your dad used to—"

"She's not my girlfriend, Mom." Kageyama wanted to point out the fact that the other mothers insist their children to _not_ skip dinner while his mother was more than willing for his son to skip dinner just to go to a festival. He didn't want to go to any festival, since he didn't want to be alone and he's going to have a hard time interacting with people. Also, he figured that his teammates must have already found their own companions. He sat back down on his seat, eyes fixed on the curry rice on his plate. "… Yet." He heard his mom say, slightly becoming nervous at the mischievous tone of her voice and the dangerous glint in her eyes. He could feel her gaze boring a hole at the back of his head.

"I'm going to let you borrow your father's yukata! It will fit you, my boy! Come, come! We don't want to waste the youth of my baby boy!" To his horror, his arm was grabbed violently and before he knew it, he was being dragged away from the table and away from his tasty dinner. "B-But, Mom… it's December! It's too cold to wear a yukata!" So much for curry rice.

* * *

She wasn't particularly fond of wearing girly clothes or uncomfortable things, but just like every girl, she wanted to feel pretty even if it's just one night. Her hand was affixed on her chin, her eyes squinted, and a short humming sound came from her closed mouth. On the bed were five kimonos, each with its own lovely design. "… Maybe you should invite Tsukishima or something." A small voice from behind her broke her concentration. She looked at the source with a glare. "He's not interested in these types of events." She replied to Hirari. The latter was carrying two robes on each of her arm. "But he _did_ promise, right?"

Mashumaro sighed in defeat. She was still too embarrassed to invite the blonde to an event he probably wouldn't enjoy. Thinking of a way to change the subject, she frantically ran a thumb against her lower lip, turning her head back to the clothes on the bed. "You should invite Kageyama. That guy must be waiting for your text. I mean, he _wants_ to socialize but he _sucks_ at socializing… well, it's something the three of us have in common." She finally retorted with a giggle, not realizing her friend's heated face just because she heard a certain name.

Hirari's throat felt like a desert where there is no well to be seen. It even hurt to swallow. "I-I don't know what you're talking about." She glanced at her phone, as the object seemed to be vibrating for a while now. Guilt washed over her aching heart, and it could not compare to any physical pain she'd feel as soon as she starts bumping into people in the festival later. "A-Anyway! When you first met Tsukishima, did you see a spark?" Hirari avoided the subject, quickly transferring the embarrassment to her friend.

"No." Mashumaro said with no hesitation. The answer surprised Hirari quite a bit, her eyes darting to her phone on the desk once again.

 _*4 new messages from Kageyama Tobio_

* * *

"Look at all the pretty lights!" Mashumaro could hardly contain her excitement. It also seemed insanely obvious that she was excited for the event, even though Hirari had to go all the way to her house and push her off the bed just so she could actually socialize with other people _besides_ Hirari and Tsukishima.

It turned out well, after all, from the scowling and bored face to the beaming smile of joy; Mashumaro's actually enjoying the event, despite the fact that she is surrounded by complete strangers and taking in too much lights from her current environment. Hirari looked around. Lanterns were hung from the stalls of food, with a fiery orange glow emanating from each red sphere. Stalls of all sorts lined up the pathway, creating a maze of liveliness, buzzing with laughter and voices of dissonance that couldn't blend well, but the lookers didn't care. Discord was like a blessing in every festival and noise is considered music in parties. "So… let's try the fried squids! Look, they're so huge! It looks delicious!" And although Mashumaro barely walked properly in her yukata and sandals, she still had energy to drag Hirari around to explore.

Hirari smiled. She liked spending time with her friend. Although it's been years, she still liked spending every New Year's Eve in the brunette's company. "Yeah, sure!" She tried hard to conceal the uneasiness in her voice. She felt guilty for feeling that way. Mashumaro was enough to complete her celebration, so what was she feeling bad about?

Snapping out of her thoughts, she realized that Mashumaro was already sliding a squid on stick in between her fingers. "Eat up. My treat." The latter was grinning widely. Her reddish brown eyes were shining with enthusiasm. There was an obvious blush on her face, but this time, it wasn't from embarrassment. It was from the newfound warmth of the upcoming year. Two tiny braids trailed on the sides of her pretty hair, with two bigger braids below the tiny ones. The four chains of hair were tied together into a mermaid ponytail. Her bangs were swept to the side. Her head was decorated with little flowers down to her braids. She looked absolutely adorable in her light lavender kimono, adorned with white flower and cherry blossom designs at the bottom.

Hirari wondered about their sense of fashion. Her kimono was white and had splashes of pastel colors of pink, blue, and yellow crawling all over the bottom part. Her right sleeve had subtle hints of blue flowers. It was lightly designed, but she liked it. Her usual ponytail was in a braided bun, a huge red flower sitting on the side. Her bangs were clipped with golden barrettes.

She sighed.

"… Hey… you can go now." Mashumaro's suddenly calm voice startled Hirari. The latter shot back a look of surprise, a slight breeze dancing across their faces, kissing them softly with its coldness. A sweet smile graced Mashumaro's features, her tied back hair giving way to her pale face, a slight dash of pink on her cheeks. "Pardon?" Hirari asked.

The only action Mashumaro did as a reply was raise a certain object in front of Hirari's face. No, it wasn't the squid she was eating. It was Hirari's phone.

Hirari's jaw dropped. "Sorry, I saw the text messages. You don't have to worry about me. We've spent countless years together. I think it's time you expand your relationships. You should go. He's probably waiting." Mashumaro said before Hirari could react. The latter did nothing but bite her lip. She could have sworn she tasted a bit of iron. She cursed at herself for biting too hard. "But…"

"No buts. Kageyama never spent New Year's eve with anyone of importance before… he needs this more than I do."

At those words, Hirari reluctantly heaved out a sigh. With quivering lips and trembling delicate fingers, she took her phone from Mashumaro's hands. "The fireworks will be starting soon. He probably really wanted to see them with you."

With a nod, Hirari ran off, waving goodbye to her friend. Mashumaro waved back, laughing. When Hirari was finally out of sight, the girl's hand slowly fell to her side. "Yeah. Go. He needs you."

* * *

She was being blinded by the lights, running and getting lost through the sea of people. In a panic, she struggled to catch her breath.

 _[From: Kageyama Tobio]_

 _Are you going to the festival?_

She looked around, feeling scared. None of the faces were familiar to her. She took a step backward, colliding into a person. "Ah, I'm sorry!" She bowed apologetically and ran away once again. There's no exit in the suffocating maze of human beings she had cast herself into.

 _[From: Kageyama Tobio]_

 _I'll be watching the fireworks. They say it's the highlight of every New Year's Eve._

Finally reaching the main road and out of the festive gathering, she looked for signs of black hair and a stoic face. Still no luck. She kept running, praying that he'd still be there. White clouds ghosted out of her open mouth as she panted, running 'til her legs felt like jelly. Her feet were starting to hurt with the sandals she was wearing.

 _[From: Kageyama Tobio]_

 _I want to watch it with you, though. If you're not coming, there's no point._

As soon as Hirari reached the playground just a few blocks away from the festival, she was surprised to see that there were still a few people roaming up to that distance. She looked from left to right, fear creeping up to her. Frantically stepping up the stairs to the slide, her legs collapsed, her exhaustion taking its toll upon her body.

 _[From: Kageyama Tobio]_

 _I'll be at the playground by 8pm. If you're not there by 8:30, well… I guess I'll be heading home._

Hirari checked the time on her phone. Dread filled her senses. She found it hard to breathe, struggling to get up the stairs while reading the time, her blurry sight getting in the way of her consciousness. _9:00pm._

She heard a loud boom from the skies. She looked up and saw consecutive exploding lights lit up the usual dark night sky. They flew up with such viciousness, the echoes of its sounds ringing in her ears along with the sound of her heartbeat. She was too late.

And Kageyama Tobio will never get to watch the beauty of the lights with her.

She cringed at the thought, pursing her lips. Tears started streaming down her face, the water making her eyes even more blurry. The girl watched the sight with pain and regret, wishing that she had come sooner. This would have been a different night for her. She opened her mouth and let out a wail, dropping her phone and crying her heart out. Her hands made their way to her eyes, wiping off the salty liquid, some getting stuck at the ends of her eyelashes. The sound of her cries were faint, dissolving within the booms and cracks from above.

Suddenly, a weight rested on her waist. It was an awkward weight, and she gasped at the contact. Her whole body stiffened, feeling something, or rather, someone against her back. "Hey." A sweet and deep voice was clearly heard, as her ears were already deaf to the loud sounds. "… Kageyama?"

She felt his body relax against her back, his hands hugging her waist. She could feel the heat from his cheeks, as the boy buried his face against the crook of her neck. "Yeah." His lips moved, barely touching her skin. "It's me."

Sheer happiness enveloped both of them, as Hirari turned around to wrap her thin arms around his neck, laughing at herself for being such an idiot. Her tears stained his shoulder, and she knew. "I know it's you."

* * *

The girl looked up at the sky, smiling to herself. Although she lost her phone while walking through the festival, at least it wasn't Hirari's phone that she lost. She chose to look at the bright side instead of ruining her night. "Oh, well." Shrugging her shoulders, she was about to walk across the bridge when something rested on top of her head.

"You lost your phone again."

She looked up, _waaaay up_ , enough to see Tsukishima, upside-down and staring at her. His smug smirk was on his face, feeling so confident and proud of himself for some reason. "… Is that…?" She asked.

"Your phone. Nice wallpaper." He commented with a snicker. Mashumaro could not say a thing. She just looked up at him, finally turning around to face him instead of leaning her head back. Her mouth hung agape, her eyes widening, the lights reflecting in her bright eyes. She blinked, wondering if it was an illusion.

The fireworks were showering graces into the sky behind Tsukishima. The blonde's smirk slowly turned into a smile, her awed face strangely making him happy. "… Hello, Maro."

She inwardly suppressed a giggle. "What are you doing in a kimono? I thought you weren't coming." She gently held his hands, still laughing like she usually does.

"Well, I promised, didn't I?"

And it was that night that they realized that it wasn't a spark they saw the first time they all met.

 _But fireworks._

* * *

 _[From: Sweetheart]_

 _DEARY! I sent our baby boy off to the festival! I hope you don't mind him wearing your yukata for his New Year's date ;) ;) *wink wink*_

 _[From: My Lovely Sweet Pumpkin Cake Daddy Kageyama]_

… _Uh… you sent our son OUT wearing a YUKATA on his DATE? In the middle of WINTER?_

 _[From: Sweetheart]_

 _Yeah, dear, why?_

 _[From: My Lovely Sweet Pumpkin Cake Daddy Kageyama]_

… _Honey, I'm coming home from work now. We have to talk._

 _Mostly about the reasons why 'yukata' literally means 'bathing clothes' and WHY they're only worn during summer._


	21. Chapter 21 Special

**PLEASE DO READ THIS.**

As of the moment, I am a _completely_ broke college student, struggling with anxiety. I thought I might owe you an explanation for my absence and inactivity.

First of all, I would like to apologize for all the postponed fics that I have yet(and probably wouldn't be able) to finish. I promise you that I've been doing everything I can to rewrite and re-edit the chapters for a better output to present to you all, but unfortunately, my classes and psychology tests were taking up a lot of time from my hands. _*cries*_

It was also a part of my plan to re-edit the whole Beautiful Accidents fic because I have been writing that fic for _years_ , and the change in style is extremely evident from the first chapter to the latest ones. Unfortunately, time isn't kind to me.

Anyway, I would like to thank you all for the support you have given me! I grew up writing in this website, and it helped me learn so much. Heck, 80% of my writing progress was all thanks to your reviews and continued support(even though I barely even update nor post fanfics anymore). I have recently just started a Wordpress blog to store my written reviews on certain topics, essays, feature articles, and most especially, my prose poetry pieces. I have also started creating original stories and a light novel collaboration with some of my friends, which I have yet to post here.

I am happy to have been a part of helping my readers appreciate fanmade works and see the world in many different perspectives through my many different fandoms. And to the friends I have made here and the critics that helped me shape my writings for the better, I am glad to have met all of you. And don't worry, I'm not saying goodbye to Fanfiction yet! I'll surely come back with more, as soon as I finish college or as soon as my mental health gets better.

Feel free to drop by my Wordpress blog, if you are interested in reading works other than my fanfics. Also, I am now accepting fanfic commissions(through a post in my Tumblr account) in case any of you want to make a request! Unfortunately, it won't be for free since I am hardly getting by college and my overall health is deteriorating because of frequent panic attacks and stress-related issues. I will appreciate any of your help, and would still love to write for you! Just send me a message, and I'll reply with a message that includes my tumblr and Wordpress url for details and sample works.

I have also just recently created a Ko-Fi account as a Creator. I was just trying my luck out, since I no longer can survive my college fees and debts, and I have nothing to rely on except for my writings hahaha. I'm completely broke and stressed, but I am okay and still alive. Feel free to drop by any of my websites! I love all of you, and I really miss Fanfiction and all your sweet reviews.

Again, thank you for all your support these years, especially for the effort you took for reading this nonsense hahaha. _*cries*_


End file.
